Suspended Werder Bremen midfielder Naby Keita is currently training with the club's under-23 team, sporting director Clemens Fritz told the Deichstube news portal on Thursday.
"It's very good and important for Naby that he can train with a team," Fritz said.
This should enable the Guinea international to maintain his fitness level and a transfer will be sought in the upcoming winter transfer window.
"It's something completely different than just keeping fit with individual training. We all have to think about the winter and find a solution," Fritz said.
The Liverpool Champions League winner made a surprise move to Bremen in July 2023, but rarely played due to injuries. In April, he was suspended for the rest of the past season after refusing to travel to the game at eventual champions Bayer Leverkusen as a substitute.
He didn't get back into the squad in the new campaign and was initially training individually.
"A return to the professional squad is not an option for well-known reasons. Naby will train with the U23 but will not play," Fritz said.
In an interview to The Guardian published on Thursday, Keita said of the incident ahead of the game at Leverkusen: "We’ll have to talk about the bus incident one day, but everyone who knows me knows that I’m a professional and that I’m not undisciplined.
"Despite everything, I apologized to the group even before the end of last season because we’re all human and nobody’s perfect."
By training with the U23, he's "helping the youngsters while I wait for the wheels to turn," the player said.
"I’m 29 years old now – I feel great I’m training and waiting to see what the future holds. The day I feel my body is no longer up to it, I’ll stop, but for now I feel fine. I’ve got a few more years to give to football," Keita said.
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