Bundesliga side RB Leipzig have dashed Liverpool’s hopes of bringing Naby Keita to Anfield before the end of the month by insisting they are “not a selling club.”

The highly rated midfielder agreed to join the Reds next summer in a £51 million deal, however after the loss of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona, there were hopes they would be able to bring the 22-year-old to Merseyside six months earlier than planned as a direct replacement for the departed Brazilian.

Leipzig however, who are currently second in the Bundesliga table, are adamant the Guinea international will be going nowhere until the end of the season.

Leipzig director Ralf Rangnick said. “We won’t allow Liverpool to sign him early.

“They have shown renewed interest to bring him in during this transfer window.

“As everyone knows, we are not a selling club, therefore it would only have been possible had we reached a mutual agreement involving an exorbitant additional fee. That is not the case.”

This was later confirmed via the club’s official Twitter account: “OFFICIAL: Naby Keïta will remain an RB Leipzig player until 30th June 2018. We wish to put the speculation about a January move to Liverpool to bed.”

Keita was the stand-out player for Leipzig last season as he helped them to a second placed Bundesliga finish in his debut season, and he has continued in a similar vein this time around.

The midfielder has managed six goals in all competitions for Leipzig, and was on hand in a 3-1 win over league rivals Schalke at the weekend.