OPINION
Loris Karius must be terrified about his Liverpool future as a recent report claimed that his club had an offer on the table for goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
According to SportsMediaSet, the Reds had put forward a proposal to the AC Milan keeper’s agent, Mino Raiola, that would see them be willing to exchange a player plus pay a whopping £35.1million for his services.
If the report is true and Jurgen Klopp was successful in his pursuit of the Italian teenage goalkeeping sensation, then Karius’ opportunities at Anfield would become very limited.
The German 24-year-old would easily be dethroned by Donnarumma as it stands, as the teen has showcased tremendous potential while in Milan, and Karius would have a hard time getting back into the first-team.
Especially as the Italian shot-stopper is significantly younger than him.
However Klopp wouldn’t hesitate to rip up plans to sign Donnarumma if Karius shone in the Champions League final and once and for all proved he was worthy of being the club’s number one choice for the foreseeable future.
SportsMediaSet claimed that Milan were holding out for a fee of £61.46million for their promising talent, and there would be no reason to spend that much on keeper who would simply be back-up.
The Reds would no doubt pursue with plans to sign Jack Butland, who is likely to join the club according to The Independent, instead with the English keeper more likely to be Karius’ understudy if anything.
This all means that Karius’ future could all be decided by how he handles playing against Real Madrid in the Champions League final, as that’s arguably the biggest stage a player can feature on at club level.
The 24-year-old’s career at Anfield has looked dead before due to blunders, but the goalkeeper has drastically improved as this season has gone on to see him be the number one choice.
The resurgent German has featured 32 times for the club across all competitions, letting in 28 goals, while keeping an impressive 16 clean sheets in order to help his side’s cause.
Although with the Reds looking to continue to improve and compete for the Premier League trophy next season, Klopp will not hesitate to make harsh decision to see that goal reached.
Therefore if Karius noticeably doesn’t deliver against Real Madrid in the Champions League final on Saturday, then his time could be up and his best case scenario would be if he found himself on the bench, especially as the Reds reportedly have the perfect replacement for him in their sights.
