Naby Keïta to miss several weeks with an abductor injury

Werder Bremen have announced that Naby Keïta will miss several weeks after picking up an abductor injury at the weekend.

Keïta had to pull out of Bremen’s first friendly of pre-season against VfB Oldenburg after injuring himself in the warm-up. On the injury to the midfielder, Bremen manager Ole Werner said: “This is extremely bitter for Naby and for us as a team. We will now do everything we can to ensure that Naby gets back in shape as soon as possible. However, we have to assume that Naby will not be available to us on the first match days. Naby will go to the Zillertal despite the injury. We have optimal conditions for his rehabilitation there, and he can also integrate further into the team there.”

The 28-year-old returned to Bundesliga this summer after five years in the Premier League, joining Bremen on a free transfer from Liverpool. Keïta only played 13 games in all competitions last season due to a host of different injuries.

The 28-year-old’s frailty was one of the main causes of his poor five years with Liverpool, as he was never able to put together a consistent run of games before getting injured meaning he was never able to show the play that joined Liverpool in 2019 from RB Leipzig. 

Bremen kick off their campaign in a months time at home against Bayern Munich, whether Keïta will be fit enough for their opener is yet to be seen. 

GGFN | Jack Meenan