Liverpool abandon pursuit of long-term transfer target

That's the end of that, for now anyway.

Liverpool have decided to end their pursuit of Naby Keita, and won't make a third bid for the RB Leipzig midfielder. According to the Liverpool Echo, the club submitted a second bid of £66m for Keita two weeks ago, but Leipzig rejected it, and this convinced Liverpool to end their interest. However, Jurgen Klopp reportedly wants to try again next summer to sign the player, but has been planning for the upcoming season without Keita, accepting no deal will be done. https://twitter.com/SportsJOEdotie/status/889524138603405313 Liverpool originally bid £57m for the Guinea midfielder and were expected to return with a third bid. However, the Bundesliga side maintained from the outset that Keita was not for sale, and they have stuck to their word. Leipzig finished second in Germany last season, qualifying for the Champions League, and evidently, want to keep hold of their best players for their maiden European campaign. Keita reportedly has a clause in his contract that allows him to leave for £48m next summer, so the 22-year-old could still end up at Anfield. https://twitter.com/SportsJOEdotie/status/890945954051960833 Liverpool started the summer well, signing Mohamed Salah for £36.9m from Roma, but it has been a frustrating summer in the transfer market for Klopp. The club suffered an embarrassing setback when reports emerged claiming Virgil van Dijk had agreed to join from Southampton. Someone forgot to tell the Saints, who raised the issue with the Premier League, and Liverpool backed away from the potential deal. There's still a chance Van Dijk will end up at Liverpool, but it looks like the deal for Keita won't happen this summer.