Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has insisted that Naby Keita will not be leaving Anfield before the end of the summer transfer window.
The 27-year-old is yet to play a minute of Premier League football this season, while he only featured for five minutes against Manchester City in the Community Shield at the end of July.
A recent report claimed that Keita was considering his future at Anfield, with the Guinea international open to the idea of moving clubs before the end of the transfer window.
The midfielder has entered the final year of his contract with the Merseyside giants, but Klopp has shut down claims that he could depart ahead of the deadline.
"And not replace him? No, that's not possible, of course not. But it's not the plan. We are not dumb that we think a player can go and we don't replace him. No, there's no chance. So, Naby will not go but if he would – what he will not do – there must be a replacement, of course," Klopp told reporters.
© Reuters
Klopp has also insisted that he is happy with his midfield options for the 2022-23 campaign, but the German is currently frustrated with the team's injury situation.
"Yes [I am happy], when they are all fit, 100%. But even then we always look to strengthen, we have to and we always did. It must be the right player and if the right player is not available in this moment then we tend to say, 'OK, then we deal with what we have before we sign a player who is not 100% right.' This situation never changed," he added.
"Now we have more injuries than we would have imagined and now it would be cool to have a new midfielder in, of course – but for now, and then we don't know when the boys come back and the situation changes constantly.
"You can just not do that and then there is another fact: I am, we are, not in charge of what we can spend. That's the situation and we get told things and then we deal with that. It was always the same and never different.
"You can say that's why we are here in a good understanding or that's why we are here in a bad understanding, but that's why we are here and that's it."
© Reuters
Thiago Alcantara, Curtis Jones and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are currently on the sidelines for Liverpool, limiting Klopp's numbers in the middle of the park.
The Reds are believed to have identified Jude Bellingham as their priority midfield target, with the club thought to be lining up a move for the Borussia Dortmund youngster in 2023.
However, a recent report claimed that Real Madrid were planning to use the funds from the sale of Casemiro to Manchester United to launch a big-money move for the England international.
Liverpool have opened their 2022-23 Premier League campaign with back-to-back draws against Fulham and Crystal Palace at Craven Cottage and Anfield respectively.
Klopp's side will now be looking to secure their first win of the new season when they make the trip to bottom-of-the-table Man United on Monday night.
Matt Law
