Naby Keita being 'wrapped in cotton wool' as injury-prone star still waiting for debut at new club

Naby Keita is being 'wrapped in cotton wool' with the midfielder yet to make his Werder Bremen debut due to fitness issues.

The midfielder left Liverpool on a free transfer this summer, bringing his injury-plagued five years at Anfield to an end.

The Guinea international joined Bundesliga side Werder Bremen upon the expiry of his contract, as Liverpool undertook a midfield makeover that involved the arrivals of Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch.

If Keita was hoping for a fresh start back in Germany, where he shone for RB Leipzig before joining the Reds, things have not worked out that way so far.

After captaining his country in friendly encounters against Brazil and Egypt back in June, he suffered an adductor muscle injury early into pre-season and has yet to feature for his new side.

BILD now report that Keita is being 'wrapped in cotton wool' as he awaits his first appearance for Werder Bremen.

The timeline for the 28-year-old's return is unclear, however, with Werder Bremen already three games into the new Bundesliga campaign.

Back in June, Werder Bremen sporting director Frank Baumann admitted that the club were initially ‘skeptical’ about taking on Keita, but were 'impressed' by his medical.

“But they were very impressed by the current condition he is in,” Baumann told Die DeichStube. “There is absolutely no reason to worry.”

Slightly unbelievably, new Liverpool signings Mac Allister and Szoboszlai have already amassed more minutes for the Reds this season than Keita and fellow injury-prone midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain managed in the 2022/23 campaign.

According to Transfermarkt, Keita missed over 105 games in total due to injury during his five seasons at Liverpool.