Naby Keita’s Liverpool career will be largely remembered for the amount of games the midfielder was unable to play but his legacy in his new club already looks to be tarnished.

As reported on Werder Bremen’s club website: ‘Werder Bremen have suspended Naby Keïta until the end of the season. The club have also handed the midfielder a substantial fine. The 29-year-old will no longer train with the team or be part of the first-team dressing room.

“As a club, we won’t tolerate Naby’s behaviour. He let his team down in a time of difficulty surrounding our recent run of form and squad availability and put his own interests above those of the team. We can’t allow that. At this stage of the season, we need full focus on the remaining games and a team who stick together. That’s why we’ve been left with no alternative.”

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It’s certainly not something we saw at Anfield from our former No.8, even if some questioned the availability of the player at times.

The 29-year-old clearly thinks he shouldn’t be on the bench and seeing as his team fell to a 5-0 loss in the same match, it perhaps shows that the Premier League winner is good enough to start in the Bundesliga.

With the team sat in 12th place, the Guinea international hasn’t had the dream return to Germany with just five appearances in the league so far this season.

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13 games have been missed with fitness concerns and the captain of his nation has averaged just 12 league games a season in the past five years.

It doesn’t look like a relationship that will continue with the club who perform in the Weser Stadium and there may be another search for a new club this summer.

It’s such a shame that a man with obvious talent can’t stay fit enough to perform regularly but actions like this certainly won’t help his career going forward.

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If Naby Keita hoped that leaving Liverpool would reinvigorate his career, things at Werder Bremen haven’t exactly gone to plan since that transfer.

He’s made a paltry five appearances all season, with a continuation of the injury woes which afflicted his time at Anfield (Transfermarkt), and now he could be facing the wrath of his current club’s bosses.

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As per The Mirror, the 29-year-old reacted to discovering that he wouldn’t start against Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday – a fixture that his team lost 5-0, with the victors duly clinching the Bundesliga title – by refusing to board the team bus and instead storming off home.

Werder’s sporting director Clemens Fritz has said that he will speak to Keita and his agent ‘about the consequences’ of his action and ‘how to proceed’.

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Keita showed glimpses of considerable talent during his five years at Liverpool, but unfortunately those were all too sporadic amid a dreadful injury record.

It came as a surprise to no-one that his contract was allowed to expire last year, and his miserable time in Germany suggests that the Anfield hierarchy were right to part ways with him.

Jurgen Klopp absolutely wouldn’t stand for the act of petulance that the Guinea midfielder committed over the weekend, and we’d like to think that the next Reds manager won’t tolerate it either.

Having been Liverpool’s club-record signing when he arrived for £52.75m in 2018, it was a real shame that Keita’s potential was never fulfilled on Merseyside.

He won’t have done himself any favours with his recent actions, either, but we hope for his sake that he’ll learn from it and that a once-promising career won’t peter out to nothingness for a player who’s yet to hit his 30s.

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One former Liverpool player is reportedly putting a few noses out of joint at his current club.

According to German outlet DeichStube, senior figures at Werder Bremen are getting tired of Naby Keita’s behaviour, with the 28-year-old reportedly turning up late for team meetings and ducking out of several sponsorship events.

The Guinea midfielder’s cause hasn’t been helped by a continuation of the injury problems which dogged his career at Anfield, with the Reds’ former number 8 playing just three times since his move to the Weserstadion last summer (Transfermarkt).

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Having cost Liverpool a then-club record £52.75m when he joined in 2018 (The Athletic), big things would naturally have been expected of Keita at Anfield.

The Guinean did have his moments with the Reds and showed enough quality to be dubbed ‘world-class’ by Virgil van Dijk (LFC official website), but ultimately his time with us was a largely frustrating one as a spate of injuries took their toll.

It must be said, though, that there weren’t any notable off-field issues with the 28-year-old when he was on Merseyside, so it seems a little surprising that he now appears to be infuriating Werder chiefs with some of his behaviour.

Nonetheless, these reports will reinforce the feeling among the Liverpool hierarchy that last summer was the right time to part ways with Keita, with the midfielders who came in during the off-season largely settling in quite well so far at Anfield.

For the Guinea international’s sake, we hope he can revive his career in Bremen and that he’ll learn from any indiscretions away from the pitch.

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Liverpool didn’t renew the contracts of several players over the summer, and one of those decisions in particular may well be leaving Anfield chiefs feeling that they made the right call.

Among those who exited as free agents at the end of last season was Naby Keita, who spent five years at the club after joining from RB Leipzig.

The 28-year-old is now back in Germany with Werder Bremen, but his fortunes haven’t exactly been supercharged by the change of scenery.

As per SportBILD [via Sport Witness], the Guinea midfielder is already ‘becoming a problem’ for Die Werderaner due to his injury-prone nature, with growing frustration among the hierarchy at the Weserstadion.

Having only just returned from an abductor tear, Keita is now sidelined again with a thigh muscle problem which’ll rule him out for a few weeks.

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We’re sorry to see that the 28-year-old, who showed flashes of his talents at Liverpool but had an appalling injury record, is continuing to be blighted by fitness problems after leaving Anfield.

Even though Werder picked him up on a free transfer, he’s their highest earner on just over £41k per week (Capology) but has played a mere 80 minutes since the start of the season for Ole Werner’s side (Transfermarkt).

Keita had his moments on Merseyside, netting in the Club World Cup en route to triumph in the tournament and famously scoring inside 15 seconds against Huddersfield, while he was once labelled ‘world-class’ by none other than Virgil van Dijk (liverpoolfc.com).

However, having cost us £52.75m upon joining in 2018 (Sky Sports), for him to incur no fewer than 21 separate injury absences (Transfermarkt) and not start more than 16 games in any of his five Premier League seasons (WhoScored) shows that he didn’t prove to be value for money.

It was obviously hugely frustrating for him but it was for Liverpool fans, too, and with Werder now realising how we felt for large periods of the Guinean’s time at Anfield, the Reds’ hierarchy must be very glad they didn’t extend his contract beyond the summer.

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It seems like a transfer window can’t go by without Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp being linked with a load of talented players in Germany.

One that has popped up several times this summer is Milot Rashica, and it seems Werder Bremen are resigned to losing their star man.

The Kosovo international was crucial to his team’s fight for survival last season, with Die Grün-Weißen coming very close to relegation.

Their Sporting Director, Frank Baumann, has been speaking to the media about Rashica’s fairly public potential departure this summer.

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“There are definitely other clubs interested in Milot Rashica. That is why it is not the most likely outcome that he will still play for Werder in the new season,” he told the Weser-Kurier, as cited by Ronan Murphy.

Rumour has it the Kosovan was going to join RB Leipzig, but that deal has been thrown into question, as Baumann continued: “RB Leipzig is definitely an exciting club, but the question is how long it makes sense for him to wait when the clubs cannot reach an agreement.”

Aston Villa have been heavily linked with a move for Rashica, but the Reds could re-join the race to sign the winger, with Liverpool loving a shrewd signing.

Should Xherdan Shaqiri depart the club this summer, as suggested in several reports, the Werder Bremen star could be a good signing.

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Liverpool acquiring excellent Werder Bremen attacker Milot Rashica for just £16m would be typical of Michael Edwards’ shrewd approach to the transfer window.

According to Sport Bild, cited in the Echo, the 23-year-old has a release-clause of €38m this summer, but that it would drop to just €18m (£16m) if Bremen are relegated from the Bundesliga.

Currently, the Germans are four points adrift from the relegation play-off spot and eight from guaranteed safety – with the Bundesliga’s nine remaining games per team set to resume halfway through May.

Sport Bild say Liverpool are eyeing Rashica, who is also drawing attention from Southampton – big fans of the Kosovo international themselves.

Rasicha has ten goals in Germany this season and can play either left, right or centrally – so in terms of a versatile bench option – he fits the bill – perhaps as a replacement for Xherdan Shaqiri.

If the price-tag is only £16m, it’s something you would expect Edwards to consider!

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German forward Max Kruse, who moved to Fenerbahce this summer when his contract with Werder Bremen expired, claims the Reds wanted to acquire him, but he turned Jurgen Klopp down in favour of a move to Turkey.

Max Kruse reveals he had an offer from Liverpool before moving to Fenerbahçe from Werder Bremen, telling bein: “I had a lot of offers, Liverpool was one of them.” #LFC #SVW

— Ronan Murphy (@swearimnotpaul) July 26, 2019

Kruse says he ‘spoke to a lot of people’ before making his decision, and he insists he does not regret it.

Whether the Reds were actually in for him, or whether there was simply an enquiry to sound him out having been identified as a potential target, is unclear. He was linked earlier in the window but it came to nothing and the Reds quickly denied any interest at the time.

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It’s probably more likely that he was a short-term option at one stage when Rhian Brewster was still on the road to recovery. With Brewster having come back strong, the club might have decided against Kruse rather than the other way around.

Sepp van den Berg is the only Reds signing so far this summer, though Harvey Elliott is expected to follow suit in the coming weeks, with that deal seemingly already agreed but yet to be formally announced.

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Marko Grujic’s performances on loan at Hertha Berlin this season have seen him earn substantial plaudits from Bundesliga side, but now Serie A side Torino have had their interest piqued.

A report from Turin-based Tuttosport, via Inside Futbol, (which has also been picked up by the Echo) suggests Torino are monitoring the 23-year-old midfielder ahead of a potential bid.

Pinch of salt as always, Reds!

As Neil Jones suggested at Goal suggested last summer, Torino were keen to bring Grujic to Turin last year but failed with a €10 million bid. His value has seemingly risen exponentially after a decent season on loan in the Bundesliga.

Torino’s no. 1 target is Watford’s Roberto Pereyra, but they have apparently baulked at his €30m price tag. That said, Grujic is likely to cost them a pretty penny too.

Back in April, Atlético Madrid were apparently after him for €40 million.

Atletico Madrid want to sign Marko Grujic on a permanent transfer. Liverpool want €40M for him. (ESPN)

— DaveOCKOP (@DaveOCKOP) April 23, 2019

The Serbian midfielder scored five goals in 23 appearances for Hertha Berlin though it doesn’t seem he will be returning to the German capital.

A return to Germany could be on the cards though as Werder Bremen are thought to be weighing up a two-year loan deal for Grujic.

Werder Bremen have joined the list of clubs desperate to sign Marko Grujic this summer, but only if Liverpool are willing to loan out the Serbian.

Talks between the two sides have “been going on for weeks” and Klopp is very impressed by their style of play. [Mein Werder] pic.twitter.com/VfdsFhunkS

— Anfield Edition (@AnfieldEdition) May 29, 2019

The Reds, though – unsure of whether they can offer him first-team minutes – could seek a permanent move for the promising midfielder and cash in on his stock while his value is high.

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Jurgen Klopp has the Liverpool team playing a certain type of way and it’s a big part of the reason we’re challenging in the Premier League and on the European stage.

The Reds are relentless; not allowing the opposition a yard on the field and pressing them into making mistakes – something we seen in their demolition of Huddersfield Town last night.

They’re a nightmare.

So, in his down time, which teams does the German boss like to watch? It turns out he enjoys the dishes Manchester City, Barcelona and Spurs serve up. The trio have all had excellent campaigns and it’s hard to argue with the man.

“Whenever I have time I like to watch Dortmund, because I’m still connected with them. Furthermore there are 3 teams: Man City, Barcelona and Tottenham. I always like to watch them,” he told DAZN – as per football.london.

“Bremen I like to watch as well, but also Mainz – with them I’m still connected too. I also think it’s impressive what they play under Sandro Schwarz.”

I have to admit, even though Werder Bremen is a bit of a shock, it’s not a surprise that Mainz is on that list – Klopp played for the club in his day and they were his first management job in 2001.

Barca, Spurs and City have all had glittering campaigns – with the Catalan giants and the Sky Blues seeking trebles and the Londoners putting in a convincing Premier League shift to go with a Champions League semi-final against Ajax.

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Liverpool and Spurs are keeping tabs on highly rated German youngster David Philipp.

The 17-year-old is contracted to Werder Bremen but still plays for the youth sides. It was his performance for the U19 side last season that brought him to our attention, registering 18 goals and 21 assists from midfield.

Sky Germany, cited in the Mirror, say Liverpool are readying a move for Philipp due to his contract in Germany running out at the end of this season.

Bremen academy director Bjorn Schierenbeck would prefer to keep the player, but has admitted Premier League sides are circling: “I wouldn’t want to rule out the interest in David from the English clubs.

“But I don’t know exactly how firm it is. We would be very eager to continue working together with David.

“We have already held talks with him, and explained what his future career with Werder can look like.”

Liverpool already have a number of superb youngsters who have currently helped us rack up five wins from five in Premier League 2.

Ben Woodburn is already a goalscoring international, Rhian Brewster has enormous potential and Harry Wilson scores endlessly for the U23s, too.

Philipp would slot right in, with the knowledge that if progresses, Klopp will give opportunities in the first-team.

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