Naby Keita Will Remain with RB Leipzig Amid Liverpool Transfer Rumours

RB Leipzig announced Sunday that Naby Keita will not join Liverpool in the January transfer window.

The club posted the following message on Twitter, stating the Guinean will not make the move earlier than the scheduled summer date:

"We won't allow [Liverpool] to sign him early, even though they have shown renewed interest to bring him in during this transfer window," sporting director Ralf Rangnick said in a separate post.

The Reds agreed a deal with Leipzig in the summer of 2017 in which Keita would move to the club in 2018, although speculation has intensified lately that he could join early.

According to Ed Aarons of the Guardian, Liverpool were advised they would need to pay an extra £17.8 million to bring in Keita in the current window. That'd be in addition to the £54 million package the club had already agreed with the Bundesliga side.

After losing Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona on Jan. 6 for a deal worth £142 million, Liverpool would've been delighted to add a midfielder.

While there are clear differences in style between Keita and the Reds' former No. 10, Keita would undoubtedly add some positive traits to the Liverpool midfield, per Scouted Football:

Indeed, in 2016-17, the 22-year-old was exceptional for the then-newly promoted Bundesliga side as they marched to a runners-up finish behind Bayern Munich.

Although the likes of Timo Werner and Emil Forsberg caught the eye, Keita so frequently provided the driving force in midfield for Leipzig. He can pass, carry possession forward and make big contributions in the final third.

Following on from a summer of incessant transfer speculation, Keita has been a long way short of his best in 2017-18. And as noted by Bayern media strategist Cristian Nyari, there are times when his aggression strays into recklessness:

Leipzig have the UEFA Europa League still to play for this season, while they also face a major fight to get back into the UEFA Champions League; they are in second place in the Bundesliga, although there are a number of sides in hot pursuit.

It's clear the club want Keita to remain in place and help them finish 2017-18 strongly before he jumps ship to Merseyside, and Liverpool may be a little short in midfield as a result.

Given the Reds have spent big money on Keita, it'd be a massive surprise if they ended up buying another player in his position in January. Liverpool supporters, having given some thought to a January arrival, will be hopeful the Guinea star is worth the wait.