Loris Karius, a German goalkeeper, made headlines in the summer of 2016 when he signed for Liverpool from Bundesliga side Mainz for a fee of just under £5m. He was brought in to be Jurgen Klopp’s first-choice goalkeeper, with high hopes that he would be their keeper for years to come. However, Karius failed to live up to expectations, slipping into football obscurity and only recently making a comeback with Newcastle United.
In his first season with Liverpool, Karius struggled in the first half of the 2016/17 campaign and played second fiddle to Simon Mignolet. Klopp remained optimistic, assuring Karius that he would take over as first-choice goalkeeper eventually. The German regained his spot in the starting XI at the start of 2018, halfway through his second season with the club, but his performances started to falter.
During the second leg of the Champions League final against Roma, Karius made an error that led to one of the four goals conceded by Liverpool. Although they advanced to the final, Karius’ mistakes proved costly. Liverpool lost the final 3-1 to Real Madrid, and two of the Spanish side’s goals were caused by two huge errors from the goalkeeper.
Six minutes into the second half, Karius inadvertently threw the ball into Karim Benzema, who scored the first goal of the match. By the 83rd minute, the Premier League side was 2-1 down, and Karius fumbled a 40-yard strike from Gareth Bale that was straight at him, putting an end to Liverpool’s hopes of a comeback. A medical examination five days later revealed that Karius had been suffering from concussion after colliding with Sergio Ramos shortly before making his first error, but he was never played by Klopp again.
Karius left Liverpool before the start of the following season, joining Besiktas on a two-year loan deal and being replaced by Alisson. He was his new side’s first-choice goalkeeper throughout his two years in Turkey and generally performed well. However, he didn’t sign permanently due to a dispute relating to unpaid wages.
Karius then went on loan to Union Berlin for the 20/21 campaign but only made five appearances during his time there, being second-choice to Andreas Luthe. He returned to Liverpool for the following season but didn’t make a single appearance before leaving on a free transfer in the summer of 2022, joining Newcastle United.
Since joining Newcastle, Karius has made one appearance in a friendly against Al Hilal during the winter break. He hasn’t played a single minute of competitive football in just under two years, but that will change in the Carabao Cup final between Manchester United and Newcastle. With Nick Pope being suspended and Martin Dubravka cup-tied, Karius will make his first appearance in English football in almost five years.
Loris Karius was once seen as Liverpool’s future but failed to live up to expectations. He made costly errors in the 2018 Champions League final and was eventually replaced by Alisson. Although he had a decent stint at Besiktas, he failed to secure a permanent deal and struggled for game time on loan at Union Berlin. Karius now has a chance to redeem himself at Newcastle United, where he will play in the Carabao Cup final.
