RB Leipzig confirm Liverpool-bound Naby Keita to stay with German club until the end of the season

Sunday 14 January 2018 14:02, UK

RB Leipzig have ended speculation over the future of midfielder Naby Keita by confirming the Liverpool-bound player will remain in Germany until the end of the season.

Liverpool agreed to sign the Guinea midfielder for a fee of £66.4m in August but the deal meant Keita playing one final season with the German side, who had qualified for the Champions League for the first time.

Sky Sports News understands there were talks this month about bringing the move forward, with reports in Germany suggesting the 22-year-old would play his final game in the Bundesliga this weekend.

But manager Ralph Hasenhuttl played down such talk, saying on Thursday: "We do not have a reason to sell Keita any time before the end of the season. That's it.

"I think that Naby wants to finish the season in a good way in Leipzig. He wants to leave a good impression.

"He made many good games for the club - in my opinion, I think that he will put everything into the rest of the season."

And the club confirmed this stance on Sunday in a tweet which read: "Naby Keïta will remain a RB Leipzig player until 30th June 2018. We wish to put the speculation about a January move to @LFC to bed."

In a second tweet, sporting director Ralf Rangnick said: "We won't allow LFC to sign him early, even though they have shown renewed interest to bring him in during this transfer window."