Former Liverpool flop Loris Karius has experienced the ultimate redemption this week by guiding his side to promotion to Germany’s top flight.
Karius, 32, is remembered by English football fans for his nightmare showing in Liverpool’s Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid eight years ago, in which two costly errors from the goalkeeper gifted the Spaniards the trophy in a 3-1 defeat.
The German never played for Liverpool again after that fateful night in Kyiv and was released by the Anfield club in 2022.
But now, back in Germany with Schalke 04, Karius has played a crucial role in sending his side back to the Bundesliga after a three-year exile, with Saturday’s 1-0 win over Fortuna Dusseldorf cementing their place with two games to spare.
Karius kept his 12th clean sheet of the season on Saturday, and his impressive concession rate of just 24 goals from 29 appearances has played a crucial role in Schalke’s success this campaign.
Loris Karius has experienced the ultimate redemption after helping his side to promotion
The German keeper is remembered for his nightmare display in the Champions League final
His wife, Diletta Leotta, lauded her husband’s ‘strength’ to bounce back and revealed he came close to quitting football
While Karius celebrated at Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen with his team-mates, his wife – DAZN presenter Diletta Leotta – lauded her husband’s resilience in a gushing Instagram post.
Leotta, who is heavily pregnant with the pair’s second child, was not in attendance for the promotion party but revealed how close Karius came to quitting football and hailed his ‘strength’.
She posted: ‘This sport can be tough, sometimes ruthless. [It] exposes you, tests you, makes you fall in front of everyone.
‘But if you find the strength to stay, to believe again, sooner or later it brings you back exactly where you deserve to be.
‘I have seen that strength up close. In the silences, in the difficult moments, on the days when it would have been easier to give up.
‘And today it’s not just a victory. It’s a revival. Its love for what you do. That’s courage. Proud of you.’
