Loris Karius Can Overcome Weak Liverpool Start to Follow David De Gea Trajectory
Loris Karius' move from Mainz 05 to Liverpool has not provided the smooth transition the young German goalkeeper would have liked so far, with injury and questionable form hampering his adjustment to life in the Premier League—but it is far from the lost cause premature criticism would suggest.
Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, speaking after the Reds' 0-0 draw with his former side Manchester United on Monday night (h/t the Star's James Benson), was one such critic, saying his "vulnerability" in dealing with crosses would have been targeted:
"He didn't look comfortable dealing with set pieces and seemed easily intimidated by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Flapping at crosses will never instil confidence in your defensive team-mates and he's not the sort of 'keeper I would have confidence playing in front of.
Make a decision and commit, be honest, just don't flap and put your team at risk.
"
However, Neville presented a jarring dichotomy as he told Sky Sports United would have been "been grateful to [David] De Gea" for his contribution on the night.
The Spaniard produced two excellent saves to deny Emre Can and Philippe Coutinho, ensuring a share of the spoils for Jose Mourinho's side in a contest their opposition dominated, enjoying 64.6 per cent of possession.
While Neville retired from professional football towards the end of the 2010/11 campaign, just months before De Gea completed his move to United, the ex-Red Devils right-back will be well aware of the troubled start the No. 1 endured in his first season at Old Trafford.
Four games into his Liverpool career, Karius is under unnecessary pressure, and onlookers both on Merseyside and beyond need only look to De Gea's trajectory from youthful pariah to goalkeeping messiah to determine this is an untimely judgment of the Reds stopper's ability.
A £4.7 million signing from Klopp's former side, Mainz, Karius arrived on Merseyside at the beginning of pre-season and took the No. 1 shirt previously worn by the likes of Bruce Grobbelaar, Sander Westerveld and Jerzy Dudek during Liverpool's time in the Premier League.
This served as a statement of Karius' intent: the former Manchester City youth was determined to take up duties as Klopp's first-choice goalkeeper, and given the manager's swift move to bring him to Anfield in May, this was a role that seemed earmarked for him.
Opting out of Olympic Games duty with the Germany under-23s, Karius highlighted his commitment and key status at Liverpool; but while he started pre-season between the sticks, this was soon curtailed.
Karius broke his hand colliding with Dejan Lovren during the Reds' 1-0 defeat to Chelsea in the International Champions Cup in Los Angeles, keeping him out of action for the rest of the summer and into the start of 2016/17.
Coming in to make his first start of the season in the EFL Cup away to Derby County, Karius initially impressed, racing off his line to deny Darren Bent a great opportunity in what was an otherwise quiet evening for the goalkeeper—a decisive move that impressed Goal's Liverpool correspondent, Melissa Reddy:
However, on his introduction to Premier League football, Karius has produced a series of shaky displays, struggling to deal with high balls lofted into the penalty area against Hull City, Swansea City and United—serving as the fulcrum of Neville's criticism, suggesting he was "easily intimidated."
Furthermore, a goalkeeper lauded for his distribution, Karius has so far been hit-and-miss with his use of the ball, gifting United an opening when his sloppy pass trickled to Pogba, let off when the Frenchman found an offside Ibrahimovic.
These are, however, common goalkeeper errors when making a first foray into the English top flight, and similar to those De Gea made on his move from Atletico Madrid to United five years ago.
"He's a young goalkeeper, very quick, good composure, presence and an outstanding replacement for [Edwin] van der Sar," Sir Alex Ferguson told United's official website on completing the signing of De Gea in 2011.
"We were looking for the same type of qualities as Edwin, because the one great quality Edwin always had was his composure and organisational ability. With David De Gea, he is very similar that way."
De Gea had big boots to fill at Old Trafford, earmarked as the long-term successor to one of the Premier League's best goalkeepers—and, at the time, he was the world's second-most expensive goalkeeper, signed for £18.9 million.
With Van der Sar having retired at the end of the 2010/11 campaign, De Gea was installed as United's de facto No. 1, and the Spaniard made his debut for the Red Devils in their Community Shield clash with Manchester City.
While United went on to seal victory over their rivals at Wembley Stadium, De Gea's performance was far from accomplished, at fault for first-half goals from Edin Dzeko and Joleon Lescott, and this nervous demeanour bled into his Premier League debut, as he let Shane Long's weak effort trickle under him during a 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns.
He kept a clean sheet in his third appearance for United, but BBC Sport detailed "more uncertain moments of handling" from the then-20-year-old during a 3-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur—most notably "flapping at a cross" to allow Jermain Defoe a chance to score late on, with the Englishman hitting the woodwork.
His next outing saw him save a penalty in United's remarkable 8-2 victory at home to Arsenal in the league, and while he went on to make errors against Basel and Benfica in the UEFA Champions League group stage, this served as something of a watershed moment for the under-fire goalkeeper.
"The press has every right to criticise you. Especially when you're a goalkeeper, who is always under the spotlight," he told Spanish publication AS (h/t the Guardian's Chris Taylor) shortly after that win, later adding: "Now it's in my hands to change those early negative criticisms into praise."
Five years later, and now 25 years old, De Gea is regarded as one of the world's best goalkeepers and has been named United's Player of the Year for the past three seasons; it's a reality unthinkable in his first months.
"Credit to him, the way he has developed is very impressive. He’s enjoyed great development over the last few years and you can just see he gets better and better," Karius told the Mirror's David Maddock of De Gea after Monday night's draw, before insisting it "takes time" to reach the level he aspires to:
"He’s right up there among the very best in the world, playing at a consistently high level and is a top goalkeeper, but it's not always easy to perform like that straight away. It takes time.
[...]
I feel I can be the No. 1 at Liverpool...I'm not a 'keeper who hasn’t shown his ability. I know I am a good goalkeeper and I've shown that a lot, so I haven't come to sit on the bench.
I hope to have a lot of success with Liverpool, win a title and then stay in goal for a long time and just do well and make the people really happy.
That would be good for the future, but I have never thought it will be easy straight away.
"
Karius' measured analysis mirrors De Gea's words in 2011 and is a testament to his character as a young goalkeeper—and that he has acknowledged the "great development" his counterpart has undergone between then and now is crucial.
Like De Gea, Karius is a supremely self-confident player, assured in his abilities and with a proven quality in one of Europe's most competitive leagues.
De Gea played every minute of every La Liga game for Atletico in 2010/11, while Karius was named German publication Kicker's (h/t Metro's Lee Thomas-Mason) second-best Bundesliga goalkeeper for 2015/16, behind only Manuel Neuer—an accolade voted for by his contemporaries.
Like De Gea in 2011, Karius has gone unbeaten in his first four games since moving to England, keeping one clean sheet despite some shaky moments between the sticks, and has received unwavering backing from his manager so far.
Though whether he can match his level of ability is questionable, Karius has the potential to follow De Gea's progress from premature media target to top-flight luminary.
But, like De Gea, a patient approach to his development must be applied, allowing him to blossom as No. 1.
Jack Lusby will be covering Liverpool throughout 2016/17 as one of Bleacher Report's lead correspondents. Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted; statistics via WhoScored.com and Transfermarkt.co.uk.
Follow Jack on Twitter @jacklusby_ and Facebook here.
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