Topic: Naby Keita Watch

[Djozer]

I'm primarily a Galatasaray fan but also have sympathies for Liverpool, Leipzig and Dortmund so try to catch as many games of them as possible. To me, Keita was maybe the best player in the Bundesliga last year. Many say Thiago, but Keita always leaves me a bit more impressed to be honest. Still a bit raw and inconsistent in some areas, but in my eyes one of the future top 3 CM's in the world.

Well, welcome to the boards mate, hope you stick around. I have a bit of a fondness for Gala from remembering the Souness flag incident from when I was a kid. And Hakan Sukur, obviously, was a legend.

And yeah, I'm hugely excited by the Keita signing and I agree, he has the potential to reach the very top tier. It's been quite some time since I've been this hyped up for a signing, unfortunately now I have to wait for a whole year...

[BabuYagu]

I took a closer look at Keita when we were first linked with him in early spring and obviously it's not difficult to see why Klopp is enamoured with him.

Leipzig used this very weird 4222 formation and in the games I've seen him at for the most part he played as a 6 in a double pivot and wide 10 in others. He wins the ball back for fun but the biggest benefit from having him imo will be the penetration he provides through the middle - I don't think you can really put a price on it in modern football and it goes in line perfectly with who we are as a team.

We are at our best playing between the lines and almost every opponent is trying to direct us sideways where we are less effective, so to have somebody who can go through the middle it opens up the pitch for us and gives us endless possibilities with the front 3 that we have.

Can - Keita - Coutinho midfield is the dream of all dreams for me, shame that it probably won't happen, however I'm sure with Keita our build-up play and our ability against pressing will go up a notch which in theory should push our team onto a higher level overall.

Good post mate and right on the nose.

Go back and watch that Palace game but imagine with Keita instead of Can or Gini. There is no way Palace succeeding at forcing us wide all game.

[SerbianScouser]

Go back and watch that Palace game but imagine with Keita instead of Can or Gini. There is no way Palace succeeding at forcing us wide all game.

Plus if Trent and Robertson keep it up, a bit of space in the central areas will be guaranteed because opposition teams will have to mind those two.

[Curtisinho]

I think people need to give credit to management here for being forward thinking. Had we not made this deal now Keita goes up for auction next summer and there are likely other clubs that could have beat us to him regardless of how much he supposedly wants to play here.

Great bit of business. He's going to look amazing next to Wijnaldum next season.

[him_15]

Great signing, BTW we need to stop signing any more African since AFCON would just kill us.

[Elzar]

Great signing, BTW we need to stop signing any more African since AFCON would just kill us.

The african nations has.....

Actually nevermind. Ye I agree, gonna be crippling.

[Dim Glas]

I honestly don't know now if people are taking the piss with this AFCON thing, surely by this point everyone knows!

Maybe it needs stickying on top over every post about Mo, Mane and Naby

[evie]

Does anyone know if it's true that Barca put a bid in for Keita just to be told he was having a medical at Liverpool? Dear God I hope it is 

[T.Mills]

The african nations has.....

Actually nevermind. Ye I agree, gonna be crippling.

 

[Keita Success]

The african nations has.....

Actually nevermind. Ye I agree, gonna be crippling.

That, and Ibe being cup-tied will ruin us.

[jillcwhomever]

Great signing, BTW we need to stop signing any more African since AFCON would just kill us.

You do know it takes place after the season ends now?

[BabuYagu]

The african nations has.....

Actually nevermind. Ye I agree, gonna be crippling.

Is it wrong that part of me wants to see is sign Seri just to see the meltdown it would cause when our entire midfield goes missing for 3 months every single season for the new revamped AFCON?

[Claude Cat]

I honestly don't know now if people are taking the piss with this AFCON thing, surely by this point everyone knows!

Maybe it needs stickying on top over every post about Mo, Mane and Naby

It's like how people are still confused over whether 4th still gets a Champions League spot if someone wins Europa League etc, proper boggles my mind how so called football fans still don't understand these things after all this time

[jambutty]

I think we're developing corporate swagger as a Club.

Fuck Barca, we've more money than them.

Money is just a commodity to our owners. 

They came in thinking FFP and have now decided to play Moneyball 2.0 to run with these fuckers.

Keita and VVD licking their lips for us is going to raise talented young ears to think about the adulation that every one of our prior stars has spoken of and start thinking of us as a plum destination because of Klopp and the project, not our history.

Let's hope Naby stays healthy, but 48M is a steal.

[Rush 82]

Is it wrong that part of me wants to see is sign Seri just to see the meltdown it would cause when our entire midfield goes missing for 3 months every single season for the new revamped AFCON?

No its not wrong of you.

That said, should start an AFCON thread so this one doesn't get messed up.

[Lfsea]

This is the sort of shit that the really big clubs - Barca, Real and Bayern have been doing for a decade now and I'm delighted we're starting to play by those rules.

[KevLFC]

Strange deal. So his release clause was for next season? Also find it a bit funny that they won't sell now for more money!

[sms1986]

Strange deal. So his release clause was for next season? Also find it a bit funny that they won't sell now for more money!

They don't mind less money as it means they can keep him for another season, his future is sorted out so that uncertainty doesn't affect his season and it also means that he doesn't go to another Bundesliga team like Bayern.

[Purple Red]

Strange deal. So his release clause was for next season? Also find it a bit funny that they won't sell now for more money!

Keita helping Red Bull make a big splash in their debut season in the Champions League is probably worth much more money in the long run to a club that is a business marketing exercise.

[dangerpuss]

Something tells me the Leipzig streams are going to be full of Liverpool fans until next summer. So they have any other players we could take? Are Forsberg and Werner good?

[vagabond]

http://www.fullmatchesandshows.com/2017/08/27/rasenballsport-leipzig-vs-freiburg-highlights-2/

Some Leipzig highlights from the weekend to whet the appetite. He's sensational.

[tubby]

My german friend says they view him over there as mixture of Kante and Ribery.  Lovely.

[Red Beret]

I think we're developing corporate swagger as a Club.

Fuck Barca, we've more money than them.

Money is just a commodity to our owners. 

They came in thinking FFP and have now decided to play Moneyball 2.0 to run with these fuckers.

This is the sort of shit that the really big clubs - Barca, Real and Bayern have been doing for a decade now and I'm delighted we're starting to play by those rules.

If you can't join 'em, beat 'em.  And vice versa.

I'm very happy with this signing, but what will elevate this transfer window from decent to excellent will be signing players we can use THIS season.  Getting VVD in could bag us the title this season - Keita joining next summer could help us retain it.

[Andy]

Wow, didn't see that coming! Did know we had been linked with hi... And so forth.

Welcome to LFC (in 2018)!

[PoetryInMotion]

Will Naby be Cup-tied next season due to having to play in the AFCON the season to next?

[Dim Glas]

Something tells me the Leipzig streams are going to be full of Liverpool fans until next summer. So they have any other players we could take? Are Forsberg and Werner good?

they have a lot of good players, no idea what their release clauses are though. Forsberg was wanted by Milan I think this summer, and he wanted out and wasn't too happy this summer when Leipzig would not let him go, so I suspect he may be leaving too next summer. Werner is very good.

Their captain Wili Orban is a very good central defender. They have an 18 year old centre back too - Dayot Upamecano, who looks a real prospect. Their new young French starlet Jean-Kevin Augustin is already making people sit up and take notice.  Marcel Sabitzer is a very good attacker too, not as 'hightlight reel' as Forsberg, but a good player.

[elpistolero7]

Remember a decade ago when Juventus, Inter and a host of teams were interested in Mascherano...or United and Madrid being interested in Alonso before he came to us...or every club with any money having a hard on for Torres before he signed for us?

Slowly but surely, with CL football, a great style of play and a manager top players are super keen to play for, we're getting back there.

This is what we missed since Rafa really, and its huge for us as we try to scale up to the club we used to be in Europe 10 years ago. Coefficient rank number 1, with every side terrified of drawing us in the CL. Big step in the right direction.

[princeoftherocks]

This really was the best option possible for everybody involved, it's great business.  We reach a(n) amicable agreement to meet somewhere in the middle.  If you remember the leipzig manager's furious bursts of indignation, when asked about our persistent pursuit of their 'star' player, it's amazing that we brought them 'round to doing business with us at all.

Everything's falling into place.


(*) I'm not sure.

[Kopenhagen]

Something tells me the Leipzig streams are going to be full of Liverpool fans until next summer. So they have any other players we could take? Are Forsberg and Werner good?

Yes, very good, both of them.

[the_red_pill]

I think we're developing corporate swagger as a Club.

Fuck Barca, we've more money than them.

Money is just a commodity to our owners. 

They came in thinking FFP and have now decided to play Moneyball 2.0 to run with these fuckers.

Keita and VVD licking their lips for us is going to raise talented young ears to think about the adulation that every one of our prior stars has spoken of and start thinking of us as a plum destination because of Klopp and the project, not our history.

Let's hope Naby stays healthy, but 48M is a steal.

Brilliant deal indeed mate. 48million is absolute robbery going by this lad's reputation!
We've already started next season's business so we're ahead of schedule. We're not messing around and we feckin stalk you into submission. I feel as though things are falling in place and the owners have finally gotten a grip on this football lark.

[peterstone]

He has a very long neck.

That's good

[newterp]

Brilliant deal indeed mate. 48million is absolute robbery going by this lad's reputation!
We've already started next season's business so we're ahead of schedule. We're not messing around and we feckin stalk you into submission. I feel as though things are falling in place and the owners have finally gotten a grip on this football lark.

we are paying more than 48m to be fair

[the_red_pill]

we are paying more than 48m to be fair

Yeah... but 48million sounds so "good".

[riismeister]

Naby
Naby Naby
Naby Naby
Naby Naby Keita

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/RkEXGgdqMz8" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/RkEXGgdqMz8</a>

Fits even better than the Toure brothers imo, seeing as there seems to be no limit to the lengths Herr Klopp would go to sign this man.

[Filler.]

I think we're developing corporate swagger as a Club.

Corporate swagger. Now there's a beautiful thing,  especially these days. Corporate swagger huh? (pause)

I prefer to think it's more to do with belief systems between manager and board. For me tho, there has to be evidence of genuine support when things don't quite go to plan - which they often do, and will. I think there needs to be a test for me to truly think FSG are a team to get behind. Let's hope there isn't one of course and we win everything in sight, while we manage to impeach Trump online, open up North Korea AND even design labels that peel off intact at the same time. Anything's possible of course, but it dismays me to see this element of the support that is so anti Klopp... even getting to levels of calling your handle 'KloppOut' on fucking twitter. I'm new to it (twitter) but shit me. There should be an exam for keyboards. Build a Titanic and set them off from Southampton and I could watch it on sailradar. 'It just disappeared!!' He's one of the biggest pulls we've got at the club! Keita has just said yes to us and could have probably hand picked one next season, but he picked us. Why's that? Players have a good time with Klopp - wouldn't you want to work with and for Klopp? I would.


<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/MiY2JsGXrtM?rel=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/MiY2JsGXrtM?rel=0</a>


Heavy metal football. Proper heavy metal... not the shite stuff.

To quote what I said when I first found we were interested and people were dubious of him.


Keita would be the player I we have ever been linked with that I am most excited about us signing. Ever.

This was the line. That was when I thought, oh good, someone else thinks exactly the same thing

[jambutty]

I prefer to think it's more to do with belief systems between manager and board.

Yeah.  Only its called cash.

In our case Corporate cash.

By all means romanticise.  I'm a pragmatist.

[rafathegaffa83]

Keita helping Red Bull make a big splash in their debut season in the Champions League is probably worth much more money in the long run to a club that is a business marketing exercise.

Yep. Glad we've been forward-thinking, like the way a lot of the German clubs have acted in this realm when a lower release clause has come into effect for the following year.

[joekim87]

Where are all the haters now who were saying we suck and won't sign noone?

[Sevens and Eights]

Love the signing, hate the Time... I'm an impatient bastage.

[The Driftwood]

Love the signing, hate the Time... I'm an impatient bastage.

We're all like the spoilt girl in Willy Wonka 'I want it now!' 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zcVnNwAHys