Werder suspend Keita for the rest of the season

Werder Bremen stated on Sunday that Naby Keita chose to travel home instead of going to the training ground with his teammates after learning he would not start Sunday's Bundesliga match against Bayer Leverkusen.

This has now led to the club suspending the central midfielder for the remainder of the current campaign.

“As a club, we won’t tolerate Naby’s behaviour," said Werder Bremen head of professional football Clemens Fritz. 

"He let his team down in a time of difficulty surrounding our recent run of form and squad availability and put his own interests above those of the team. We can’t allow that. 

“At this stage of the season, we need full focus on the remaining games and a team who stick together. That’s why we’ve been left with no alternative.”

Keita took to Instagram on Monday to hit back at Werder Bremen, denying that he has any disciplinary problems.

“Since the beginning of my career, wherever I've been, I've never had problems with discipline and I've always tried to be a role model. So I won't accept anybody tarnishing that image,” he stated.

"To the fans: I want you to know that I fight every training session to make you happy every weekend. Training, giving everything, these are the limits of my strength. Allez, Werder!"

The midfielder has made just five appearances and played 107 minutes of football for Werder since joining from Liverpool last summer.