So the decision has been taken...for now. Loris Karius is in, Simon Mignolet is out, and after he quickly took to the press to voice his displeasure, the Belgian goalkeeper could yet find himself all the way out, with a potential January move. Either way Jurgen Klopp has made his choice and the Liverpool goalkeeping conundrum has taken another turn.
Arguments have already been had over which stopper is the better bet, with everyone from fans on social media to former players and pundits—Jamie Carragher says Mignolet is better—having their say. It’s irrelevant. Karius is to get his opportunity, and it’s up to him to take it. Still waiting in the wings is Danny Ward, who may yet get a much-deserved chance to stake his own claim before summer.
Ahead of Karius now is a seven-week period which could define his Anfield career: unfulfilling stop-gap who only added to confusion, or the beginning of a run where the doubts and disbelievers diminish?
For within this period fall two sets of matches: the standard and the telling. The former group, against clubs Liverpool should dominate against and—in usual circumstances—beat, won’t offer quite as much insight, but Karius will still be scrutinised. He may only face a couple of shots against the likes of Swansea or Huddersfield, but how does he deal with them?
Liverpool’s shots faced to goals conceded ratio has been reasonably poor for some time, and it’s not just down to Karius of course. The team don’t often give up vast volumes of chances, but those they do cede, tend to end in goals against them. The first-choice goalkeeper has to be able to lower that probability of the opposing team scoring from one or two attempts.
The second group of fixtures, the telling, will dictate the fate of Liverpool’s 2017/18 season. Simply put, Karius dare not be the fall guy in these games.
Tottenham at the start of February is potentially a top-four-defining clash. Porto, away then home, is the Reds’ first Champions League knock-out fixture since 2009, and a tie they have every possibility of progressing through. And at the very edge of the seven-week span, it’s Old Trafford and Manchester United. There are just three points between the two sides at present; it’s likely that the gap won’t be vastly different by the time they meet and third, or even second, place in the league could be on the cards.
Perform in those matches—that is, make a telling and positive contribution—and fans will begin to see Karius in a different light. He did so for his former club in the Bundesliga, but hasn’t yet had the run of games or self-confidence to showcase it at Liverpool. This is his opportunity, perhaps his final one, to do so.
It’s 10 matches, give or take if Ward or Mignolet start in the FA Cup.
That’s a decent run of starts, and it’s plenty of game time in succession given he also played against Spartak, West Brom, Leicester, Everton and Man City across the Christmas and new year fixture log.
Ten matches to prove his worth, to reward his manager’s faith and stop the rumours over a summer move for yet another new face.
There can’t be too many complaints or excuses by Karius if he fails to perform. The defence has been boosted by the Virgil van Dijk signing, the full-back areas are as consistent as they have been in a decade and the entire morale and self-confidence of the team is sky-high.
Fixing the last line of defence is still high on the list of priorities for Klopp, and although it’s correct that he offer his current incumbents an opportunity to be the solution, it’s last-chance saloon for Karius. He must learn from how Mignolet failed to take his own chance, and become the dominant, consistent and reliable presence the Reds so desperately desire.
