Believe it or not, Naby Keita has already made more starts since joining Ferencvaros a few months ago than in the entirety of his final Premier League season with Liverpool in 2022/23.
That his tally of Ferencvaros starts stands at a still measly four, meanwhile, rather sums up the stop, start and stop again career of a footballer who – having turned 30 in February – really ought to be operating at the peak of his powers for one of the premiere clubs in European football.
A painful and seemingly never-ending decline continued apace during Naby Keita’s ill-fated return to the Bundesliga last term following that release by Liverpool.
Keita was frozen out by Werder Bremen. Injuries, illness and a lengthy suspension limited the former RB Leipzig enforcer to just over 100 minutes of action in Germany’s top flight.
No one at the Weser Stadium was ever going to stand in his way, then, when Ferencvaros offered Liverpool’s £52 million former record signing the chance to get some much-needed minutes into his legs away from the prying eyes and the media glare.
Linking up with one-time Anfield hitman Robbie Keane – the former Maccabi Tel Aviv boss taking over at the Hungarian giants – Keita is slowly but surely proving his worth to a fanbase cautiously expecting big things from one of the club’s most high-profile signings in modern history.
Liverpool flop Naby Keita is loving life at Hungarian giants Ferencvaros
After scoring in a friendly match against Soroksar and providing an assist for the talented Alex Toth during a 2-2 draw with ETO FC Gyor, Keita has now started four successive games for the first time since the beginning of 2023 under Jurgen Klopp.
And while he may never rediscover the barnstorming brilliance of those Leipzig days, to quote Hungarian publication Nemzeti Sport, Keita has certainly been ‘worth the wait’.
“There is a crazy, fantastic atmosphere in our stadium,” Keita told reporters this week, a man desperate just to enjoy his football again after so many years of misery and frustration. “It is wonderful to play football in front of such fan support. They push the whole game. They motivate the team.
“If the coach [Keane] counts on me, I am always ready. No matter how many minutes I get, I give 100 per cent for the team. I feel good. The coaching staff, everyone is very good, they work hard to win every game. We have to focus on every game.
“It is not an easy season, but we have to put in even more work to win the championship. And that is our goal.”
‘Amazing’ Keita tipped to inspire Ferencvaros title charge
Ferencvaros have won the Hungarian league title in each of the last six seasons. That dominance is under threat now, however. Puskas Akamedica are two points clear with seven games remaining.
Keane, a league champion with Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel, will be hoping that Keita can provide the experience and the star power on and off the pitch to snatch a seventh successive crown from under their rival’s nose.
“Naby Keita spent only 322 minutes on the pitch for Ferencvaros but, if we only from a football perspective, we can evaluate this very short period as a success story,” Nemzeti Sport explain.
“If Keita stays healthy, he can lead ‘Fradi’ – who were in a hole from the end of autumn to the beginning of spring – to a Championship title and cup victory. And if they manage to get into the Champions League in the summer, there is no question that signing him was a good decision.”
Nemzeti Sport highlight the ‘outstanding’ statistics which back up Keita’s influence.
A ‘really classy player’ who ‘fits perfectly into Ferencvaros’ gameplan’, the Guinea international is snapping into tackles and dictating proceedings in a manner reminiscent of his Red Bull Arena heyday, albeit in a competition of much lower quality.
“It’s great to learn from a player like that, because we play in a similar position,” says Toth, who converted Keita’s first Ferencvaros assist in thumping fashion a few weeks back.
“What he does on the pitch is amazing, and what surprised me was that he’s a brilliant person off the pitch too.”
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