The redemption arc nobody saw coming

Loris Karius will forever be linked to one of the most painful nights in Liverpool's recent history. His errors in the 2018 Champions League final against Real Madrid haunted him for years, and when Jurgen Klopp finally released him at the end of his contract in 2022, it felt like the end of a chapter nobody had particularly enjoyed reading. Yet here we are, and the story has taken a turn worth celebrating.

Loan spells at Besiktas and Union Berlin followed that Kyiv nightmare before his Liverpool departure was made permanent. He then signed for Newcastle as a back-up option, and got his moment in the spotlight at Wembley in the 2023 League Cup final against Manchester United, filling in with Nick Pope suspended and Martin Dubravka cup-tied. Newcastle lost 2-0, but Karius was not to blame for either goal. Small mercies, perhaps, but meaningful ones for a keeper trying to rebuild his reputation.

From Bundesliga 2 to rave reviews

The real turning point came in early 2025 when Karius dropped down to Bundesliga 2 to join Schalke, the fallen German giants who were pushing for promotion. He played a key role as they topped the second tier and earned their place back in the top flight. It was unglamorous, purposeful work from a goalkeeper who simply wanted to play football again, and it paid off.

Schalke have found life tough back in the Bundesliga, sitting 14th after six matches, but Karius himself is a different story entirely. Now 33, he is arguably playing the best football of his life. Saturday's 1-0 home defeat to Mainz, one of Klopp's former clubs, could have been a great deal worse without him. He was named Man of the Match despite his side losing, which tells you everything about the gap between his performance and those around him.

What the German press are saying

The German media were not holding back. BILD declared Karius "world-class again", noting he made two crucial one-on-one saves in the very first minute alone. WAZ gave him the highest possible player rating and wrote: "It is thanks solely to the goalkeeper that Mainz did not score more goals before the break. In the very first minute, Karius neutralised three clear-cut chances." They added that he was "by some distance, Schalke's best player" despite being powerless to prevent the only goal.

RevierSport said Karius saved Schalke "again and again", while his own manager, Miron Muslic, was equally glowing after a difficult afternoon for the team as a whole: "Loris Karius kept us in the game with several excellent saves." When a manager singles out his goalkeeper after a defeat, it usually means one of two things. Either the keeper was at fault, or he was the only reason the scoreline was not worse. This was very firmly the latter.

A career rebuilt the hard way

Karius will need his teammates to step up if Schalke are going to survive in the top flight this season. The saves he is making every week cannot carry a struggling side indefinitely. But whatever the table looks like come May, the personal story here is one of genuine perseverance. He took the long route back through lower leagues and reserve roles, did the quiet unglamorous work, and has arrived at a point where the best football journalists in Germany are calling him world class again. That is not nothing. For a Liverpool supporter watching from afar, it is actually quite something.