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Naby Keïta could be a Liverpool player by Sunday. Or it might be just another crazy rumour. Either way, all of Liverpool Twitter was talking on Friday night about whispers in Germany that a deal was all but done and that the Red Bull Leipzig and Guinea star would officially be a Red within a matter of days.
Liverpool had confirmed in August that Naby Keita would become an LFC player at the beginning of the 2018/19 Summer transfer window after agreeing a deal for more than USD 68 million.
Information from within Leipzig this evening that Naby Keita will become a Liverpool player on Sunday
— Chris Williams (@Chris78Williams) January 12, 2018
Hearing from Leipzig that the #Keïta deal will be about €95 million (not confirmed yet). The deal appears to be done. #LFC
— Manuel Veth (@ManuelVeth) January 12, 2018
With Philippe Coutinho’s move to Barcelona, RB Leipzig had appeared even more adamant in their stance that Keita would not be allowed to leave in January as they are currently challenging for Champions League qualification and are preparing for the Europa League knockout stages.
Oliver Mintzlaff, RB Leipzig’s CEO said this last week:
”Neither Naby nor his agent have made the request to leave the club in the winter. There are contracts, and they say that he will be a Liverpool employee from July 1 onwards.”
It now seems that something may have changed and that would likely be the insistence to leave from the player himself. The 22-year-old Keita has not been able to reproduce the same form this season that captured Liverpool’s attention and subsequent signing of the player.
Naby Keita just opened a business in London, same place as one Sadio Mane pic.twitter.com/4RapE28OsH
— AnfieldNation (@AnfieldNation) January 12, 2018
It has been reported in Germany that RB Leipzig are now more open to letting Keita go this month and will apparently be willing to do so if Liverpool pay an additional USD 17 million as Leipzig need to generate extra revenue to not fall foul of UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules.
Keita would of course be cup-tied for the Champions League but would be allowed to play in the Premier League and the FA Cup.
Watch this space! Naby Keita seems to have pulled a Coutinho on RB Leipzig… to the victor goes the spoils and it’s about damn time that Liverpool FC be the victor.
Up the Reds!