The former Reds star's career is on the up again after winning promotion last season
Former Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius following the Champions League final defeat in May 2018
Loris Karius following his Champions League final nightmare in 2018(Image: Getty)
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Loris Karius is enjoying a new lease of life, four years after being let go by Liverpool. To many, sadly, the German is best known for his blunders in the Reds' 2018 Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid.
Karius never played again for Liverpool, having loan spells at Besiktas and Union Berlin before Jurgen Klopp sanctioned his release upon the expiry of his contract in 2022. To his immense credit, Karius has impressively rebuilt his career.
After signing for Newcastle as a back-up keeper, he made a rare appearance in the 2023 League Cup final against Manchester United because Nick Pope was suspended and Martin Dubravka was cup-tied. Despite a 2-0 defeat at Wembley, Karius couldn't be blamed for either goal.
In early 2025, in pursuit of first-team football, he dropped into Bundesliga 2 with fallen giants Schalke, playing a key role as they topped German football's second tier last season. It's been a challenging return to the top flight for Schalke, who sit 14th after six games.
However, Karius, 33, is going from strength to strength, earning rave reviews for his performances. Following Saturday's 1-0 home defeat to Mainz, one of Klopp's former clubs, Karius was named Man of the Match, despite his side's defeat.
Here's how German news outlets reported his performance...
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 2: Liverpool FC Head Coach Andoni Iraola concentrates after the pre-season friendly match between Liverpool FC and Leeds United at Soldier Field on August 2, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Miller/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)
Liverpool's new head coach Andoni Iraola, pictured on the club's tour of the US(Michael Miller/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)
BILD
In its report, BILD dubbed Karius 'world-class again' as it said: "Without Loris Karius, Schalke's 0-1 defeat against Mainz would likely have been even worse. The goalkeeper made two crucial one-on-one saves in the very first minute and was once again named player of the match."
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Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung
WAZ issued a similar review as they gave him the highest possible player rating of one. "It is thanks solely to the goalkeeper that Mainz did not score more goals before the break," the outlet wrote. "In the very first minute, Karius neutralised three clear-cut chances.
"He also demonstrated his class against [Phillip] Tietz and when dealing with a long-range effort from [Sheraldo] Becker. After the interval, he showed excellent timing in rushing out to challenge Becker, once again denying a major scoring opportunity.
Loris Karius
Karius kept the score down in Schalke's defeat to Mainz(Image: Getty Images)
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"He was powerless to prevent the goal that made it 0-1. Nevertheless, Karius delivered a top-tier performance and was, by some distance, Schalke’s best player."
Revier Sport
RevierSport praised Karius for saving Schalke "again and again" and said: "What Mainz could have partly blamed on Sheraldo Becker's poor finishing this afternoon, from Schalke's point of view, is clearly the fault of their own goalkeeper: Because Karius saved the Royal Blues from conceding goals several times, mostly against Becker."
Loris Karius
Karius has impressively rebuilt his career(Image: Getty Images)
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Meanwhile, his manager, Miron Muslic, singled out Karius for praise after a disappointing team performance: "You have to come back using our Schalke virtues: aggression, strength in challenges and willpower.
"We only managed that from the 65th minute onwards, which is too late. Until then, Mainz could have extended their lead. Loris Karius kept us in the game with several excellent saves."
Karius will need more help from his teammates if Schalke are going to avoid an immediate return to the second tier. Whatever happens, he has impressively got his career back on track following the pain of that Champions League final.