Liverpool fail in attempt to sign Naby Keita early as RB Leipzig rule out move, leaving Jürgen Klopp short on options

Leipzig issue statement to confirm the midfielder will not leave for Merseyside until the summer, leaving Liverpool facing a £90m conundrum on whether to move for Thomas Lemar

Naby Keita will have to wait until summer to join Liverpool after RB Leipzig refused to sell him early (Getty)

RB Leipzig have officially ruled out the possibility of Naby Keita joining Liverpool FC this January, six months ahead of schedule.

Following the completion of Philippe Coutinho’s £142m move to Barcelona last week, Liverpool are searching for the influential playmaker’s replacement.

Keita will arrive on Merseyside as part of a £57m deal in July but in light of Coutinho’s departure, the Merseyside club re-opened negotiations with Leipzig in the hope of bringing the midfielder’s move forward.

Leipzig officials, however, have publicly maintained that Keita will not be allowed to leave this winter and on Sunday, the club released a statement confirming the 22-year-old would remain in Germany until the end of the season.

“Naby Keita will remain an RB Leipzig player until 30th June 2018,” the Bundesliga club tweeted. “We wish to put the speculation about a January move to LFC to bed.”

Ralf Rangnick, Leipzig’s sporting director, added: "A sale would have only been possible if we had secured an additional, exorbitantly high transfer fee."

Liverpool must now reassess their options, with 17 days remaining in the current transfer window.

Monaco winger Thomas Lemar is understood to be the club’s preferred Coutinho replacement, though the Ligue 1 club’s asking price of more than £90m may prove a sticking point.

Jürgen Klopp, the Liverpool manager, has indicated that the club will only move for the “right” player this month, suggesting the search for Coutinho’s replacement could stretch into the summer.