Naby Keita has reflected on his time at Liverpool with pride, hailing the club and its fans as “very special” as he leaves after five injury-hit years.
A club-record deal back in 2017 allowed Keita to move to Anfield from RB Leipzig a year later, but the Guinean now departs at the end of his contract.
There was no extension on offer to the player who inherited Steven Gerrard’s No. 8 shirt, having only started 77 games over five years, with injuries blighting his spell.
Nevertheless, Keita has looked back on his time on Merseyside fondly, paying tribute to Liverpool in a post on Instagram on Tuesday.
“Hello LFC!” the 28-year-old wrote.
“It has been an outstanding time and experience to play for this very special club! I will always be thankful and proud to have shared so many great moments.
“Wishing good luck to my teammates, coaches and staff for the future and upcoming.
“I never forget my Scouse people. See you soon! Naby Lad.”
Keita’s farewell message came after a muted end to his final season, with his last appearance seeing him brought off at half-time in the 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace.
An ongoing injury saw him make the bench just once in the final 16 games, and there was a sheepishness as he received a guard of honour at Anfield earlier this month.
Regardless, Jurgen Klopp has maintained Keita was an important player in his successful reign with the club, while he was undoubtedly a popular member of the squad.
Virgil van Dijk, Jordan Henderson, Kostas Tsimikas, Adrian and Xherdan Shaqiri were among those to reply to his message, along with Andy Robertson.
“Gonna miss slapping your head Naby!” came the left-back’s priceless response.
