Former Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius hailed for 'incredible comeback' in first game for more than a year

Liverpool has often been a club where player’s careers have peaked over recent years.

It has regularly been the case that those who leave the Reds can simply not find the same level when they move on.

Perhaps the most extreme example of this comes in the case of goalkeeper Loris Karius.

It wasn’t that Karius was especially good at Liverpool, but the fact remains that the 31-year-old’s career has been on downward trajectory ever since his final game for the club in 2018.

Of course, that last match was not just any old occasion. Karius’ mistakes against Real Madrid in the Champions League final are some of the most notorious in football history.

Since then, the keeper has bounced around several clubs without ever really establishing himself. But now in the German second division with Schalke, it looks like Karius has finally found home.

Photo by Christof Koepsel/Getty Images

Loris Karius makes ‘incredible comeback’

Karius’ career has been a sorry tale ever since that night in Kyiv in 2018. Before moving to lowly Schalke in January, he had played just twice in two years.

Those appearances came one year apart at Newcastle, with a Carabao Cup final start in February 2023 followed up by a Premier League match against Arsenal on February 24th 2024.

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Prior to Friday night, that was the last time Karius had played a competitive fixture. However, the former Mainz shot-stopper was thrown in to play Schalke’s relegation six pointer against Preussen Munster on Friday and came through it with a man of the match display.

“Two months after his arrival, an incredible comeback for Loris Karius,” journalist Florian Plettenberg reported on X.

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“A top performance in Schalke 04’s 1-0 win against Preußen MUnster made him the match winner.

“Karius is now S04’s new number one. Today was his first game in a year without any official match appearances. Contract until the end of the season.”

Karius gets back on track

After a really difficult six-and-a-half years, it is fantastic to see Karius doing well once again.

The hope now will be that the former Liverpool man can kick on and establish himself at what is a sleeping giant of German football.

“He’s been here for two months and today he showed that he can make the difference,” manager Kees van Wonderen said after the game.

“I’m happy for Schalke, for the team, for him.”

We’re happy for him, too. Fingers crossed this can signal the start of a new chapter for Karius who deserves a slice of luck after seeing it desert him for so long.

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