Naby Keita was a notable absentee on Thursday as Liverpool players trained ahead of tomorrow’s Premier League outing.
Jurgen Klopp’s side are back in action following a 2-1 defeat at Manchester United on Monday evening as the Reds host Bournemouth at Anfield.
Keita was omitted from the squad that lost at Old Trafford earlier in the week, with Klopp later revealing that the Guinea international has joined the ranks of injured players on Merseyside.
However, prior to the clash there was speculation about the former Leipzig midfielder wanting to leave Liverpool, with a Sky Germany journalist revealing that negotiations over a new contract had stalled due to a shortage of regular football, with Borussia Dortmund keen.
And there was no sign of Keita in the training photographs on Thursday in what is a major indication that the player – on £120,000 per week – will not be involved against the Cherries tomorrow.
And with a week left in the transfer window, well it’s possible that Keita has played his final game for Liverpool, although there’s no possible way that Klopp and FSG will offload him unless there is a replacement coming in.
The Reds are suffering a major crisis of injured midfield players, with Thiago Alcantara, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Curtis Jones all sidelined.
Despite not being involved heavily at the moment, Keita is a massive player for Liverpool simply because of the fact he remains on their books for now and unless the Anfield outfit sign somebody else, which looks unlikely at this stage, then it’ll stay that way until January at the very earliest.
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