Werder Bremen have suspended Naby Keita for the rest of the season and imposed a “substantial” fine after accusing him of walking out of Sunday’s Bundesliga clash with Bayer Leverkusen.
The 29-year-old former Liverpool midfielder did not feature in a 5-0 defeat at the Bay Arena, with his club claiming he had chosen “not to travel to the ground with the team and decided to go home instead” after discovering he was not in the starting line-up.
A statement on the club’s official website said: “Werder Bremen have suspended Naby Keita until the end of the season. The club have also handed the midfielder a substantial fine.”
Guinea international Keita, the statement added, “will no longer train with the team or be part of the first-team dressing room.”
Bremen’s head of professional football Clemens Fritz said: “As a club, we won’t tolerate Naby’s behaviour.
“He let his team down in a time of difficulty surrounding our recent run of form and squad availability and put his own interests above those of the team. We can’t allow that.
“At this stage of the season, we need full focus on the remaining games and a team who stick together. That’s why we’ve been left with no alternative.”
Leverkusen’s win clinched them the title and left Bremen sitting in 12th place, just five points clear of the bottom three with as many games remaining.
Keita, who had a spell in Germany with RB Leipzig earlier in his career, joined the club as a free agent on a three-year deal last summer following the expiry of his contract at Anfield.
Milan 5-1 Cagliari: Rossoneri back to winning ways after Pulisic double
Milan snapped a six-match winless run in all competitions with a crushing 5-1 victory over relegation-threatened Cagliari in Saturday's Serie A clash at San Siro.
The win moves Stefano Pioli's side closer to securing second place, sitting on 74 points and seven ahead of third-placed Bologna and eight clear of Juventus, who host Salernitana on Sunday.
Ismael Bennacer opened the scoring after 35 minutes, pouncing on a loose ball in the centre of the box before Christian Pulisic extended their advantage after a fast break in the 59th minute.
Tijjani Reijnders scored a third for Milan with a superb long-range effort in the 74th minute and Rafael Leao got on the scoresheet seven minutes from time before Pulisic sealed the rout three minutes later with his second of the game and 12th league goal this season.
Nahitan Nandez had pulled a goal back in the 63rd minute for Cagliari, who remain in 15th place with 33 points, three points above the relegation zone.
Madrid's two-goal hero Diaz turns focus to Champions League glory after Granada win
Real Madrid swept aside already relegated Granada in LaLiga on Saturday but Los Blancos attacker Brahim Diaz says all focus is on lifting the Champions League.
Diaz was twice on target as Madrid eased to a 4-0 away victory, with Fran Garcia and Arda Guler also finding the net for Carlo Ancelotti's side.
Madrid had already been crowned LaLiga champions last weekend before edging through their Champions League semi-final clash with Bayern Munich in midweek.
The Spanish giants meet Borussia Dortmund in UEFA's showpiece at Wembley Stadium on June 1 – and the Champions League trophy was on Diaz's mind after defeating Granada.
"We all wanted to show that we want to get maximum points in the league. I'm very happy with the goals," Diaz told RMTV.
"I reached 12 goals and seven assists. It's very easy to play here, with these team-mates.
"The most important thing is the titles. We already have the [Spanish] Super Cup, the league and we want the Champions League."
Granada remain in 19th place with 21 points, while 15th-placed Mallorca's victory over Las Palmas earlier in the day confirmed their relegation after just one season in the top flight.
"You could have expected it, of course, but when Mallorca wins it becomes mathematical and getting relegated, it's one of the most complicated games we've ever played," Granada's Carlos Neva told DAZN.
"I told my team-mates that we should finish fighting, with our heads held high. We should enjoy the top flight, because we don't know if we'll ever play in it again."
Madrid head coach Ancelotti, meanwhile, had words of encouragement for the relegated side.
"In sport you have to look at defeat too, it has to be an opportunity to do better in the future," the Italian told his post-match press conference.
"Granada is an important club and they will try everything to get promoted next season and they have the chance to do it."
Terzic slams Mainz showing after Dortmund suffer Champions League hangover
Edin Terzic warned Borussia Dortmund must swiftly forget about their Champions League heroics in Paris after a 3-0 humbling by Mainz on Saturday.
Lee Jae-Sung twice punished a sloppy Dortmund performance after Leandro Barreiro had opened the scoring for relegation-battling Mainz in their Bundesliga clash.
That abject performance came after BVB managed a 1-0 away victory against Paris Saint-Germain, progressing to the Champions League final after a 2-0 aggregate victory over Luis Enrique's side.
Dortmund head coach Terzic was far from impressed after defeat against Mainz left his side four points adrift of fourth-placed RB Leipzig in the German top flight.
"Let's let Paris be Paris and talk about last week and this week," Terzic told Sky Sport Germany.
"The starting position was similar to last week. Except now we were always late and outnumbered.
"It was a deserved defeat, especially because of the first half."
Marco Reus echoed Terzic's sentiment after Dortmund came crashing back down to earth following their European success.
"If you see the first half, it's deserved, even at the highest level," the Dortmund veteran added.
"We expect more from ourselves. There was still a lot at stake for Mainz.
"It was important for us to continue to gain self-confidence. That just was not good today. This is a pity."
Dortmund will hope to respond when they host Darmstadt next Saturday before their Champions League final against Real Madrid on June 1 at Wembley Stadium.
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