According to Christian Falk of Bild Sport, Liverpool outcast Loris Karius might leave in winter amid interest from FC Basel. The Swiss giants were keen on having the German custodian in their ranks during the summer window, but the 28-year-old rejected the move as he failed to agree on personal terms with his suitors.
Meanwhile, RotBlau are now tipped to reignite interest in the coming days to challenge and cover Heinz Lindner between the sticks. Đorđe Nikolić has entered the final year of his Basel contract, whereas 19-year-old Felix Karl-Ernst Gebhardt is not yet ready for regular first-team status.
BSC Young Boys were the runaway Swiss Super League winners last season with 84 points. Basel, though runners-up, finished 31 points behind the reigning champions. Although it’s been a steady start so far this campaign, they need to keep on bolstering the current setup with quality inclusions. The Reds have already sanctioned Liam Millar’s £1.3m transfer to St. Jakob-Park back in July and they won’t stand in the way of Karius’ either if a revised offer is received for the once highly-rated goalkeeper.
The Rise And Fall Of Loris Karius
The former Mainz star had a bright start to his Liverpool career. He eventually replaced Simon Mignolet to become the ‘number 1’, but the nightmare against Real Madrid in the Champions League final cost him his place three years back. The arrival of Alisson Becker led to his loan exit to Besiktas.
The Turkish giants were supposed to make the move permanent last year, however, the shot-stopper decided to terminate his stay amid controversies over unpaid wages. A return to Bundesliga with Union Berlin could not salvage him either and the player is now back at Merseyside as the fourth-choice keeper behind Alisson, Caoimhin Kelleher and Adrian.
Liverpool would not offer him an extension beyond next summer and Karius is free to talk to other clubs from January onwards over a Bosman switch at the end of the ongoing term. A winter exit might earn the Reds a minuscule figure, but the freed up wage bill would be a bigger relief considering the financial constraints of the club.
The former Germany youth international has lost his track completely since leaving Besiktas. He should have accepted Basel’s offer to reinstate his career, similar to what Joe Hart has done by joining Celtic last month. It’s high time for Karius to have a reality check and part ways with Liverpool in due time for first-team football
