Liverpool have been linked with loads of players now that Champions League football is almost assured. A lot of rumours have been surfacing the Internet and luckily, each one gets killed as and when the players reveal their future. Obviously, the media has exploited the weaknesses in our squad and have used it to create transfer rumours over the last few months.
Anyway, the latest news is that our long-term target Naby Keita has spoken about his future amidst rumours linking him with a £50million move to Anfield. It was reported by the Mirror that a £50m deal was on the cards for the Reds to sign the Bundesliga ace. However, the Leipzig man has bluntly said that he wants to enjoy his holidays and focus on next season.
Keita has starred in the Bundesliga this season and was named in the German top flight’s Team of the Year. While speculation tipping him to join Liverpool continues, the 22-year-old insists that he isn’t taking any notice.
He was quoted by the official Bundesliga site as saying;
“I really don’t worry about such things. My only focus is on our games and my performances, they are the most important things. I am a young player who never cares about rumours or what appears in the newspapers. I am now looking forward to a well-earned holiday and then to next season.”
Keita, who only joined Leipzig from Red Bull Salzburg last summer, helped his club to finish second in the Bundesliga this season.
On his stunning breakthrough season this term, he added:
“This is like a dream! We enjoyed a really great season but it sits well with us. With each game we won, our confidence grew that much more. Our initial goal was to achieve top-flight safety as soon as possible. We succeeded brilliantly and by finishing second, we can of course feel more than satisfied. But we don’t want to sit back now. We will continue to progress and ride this wave of success for as long as possible.”
While Liverpool are ready to break the bank to sign Keita, Leipzig are determined to keep hold of him and others at the club. The club’s chief executive Oliver Mintzlaff said at the weekend:
“We have decided that we will not sell any player from our starting line-up. [We] told this to our team at the end of the season. We will keep our team together and keep on developing.”
Now that the player and the club’s chief executive have both come out and said they aren’t thinking about a move, will the rumours stop? We never know. All we know now is that Naby Keita is probably not leaving RB Leipzig this summer.
As much as we’d have all liked to have him at the club, it seems like it is not happening. Sad indeed.
