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‘We’ve done all our preparation as if he were our number 1… the rest is up to him’: Eddie Howe says Newcastle HAVE NOT taken any special precautions with Loris Karius as he prepares to make his first return to English football since Bad Final of the Champions League 2018
- Loris Karius will start for Newcastle against Man United in the Carabao Cup final
- Reserve cap begins with Nick Pope suspended and Martin Dubravka cup tied
- Karius started for Liverpool in their ill-fated 2018 Champions League final
Eddie Howe has insisted that substitute goalkeeper Loris Karius has been groomed “as if he were our number one” ahead of Newcastle’s Carabao Cup final clash with Manchester United.
With the Magpies looking to secure their first major domestic title since 1955, Karius will make his first return to English football since his infamous performance in Liverpool’s Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid in 2018.
However, despite fears that Karius would struggle to make his club debut in such a crucial game, Howe explained that the 29-year-old has prepared as any other goalkeeper on the team would.
“We have tried to be very normal with Loris. He is an experienced goalkeeper. He doesn’t need too many words from me.
He has worked with the coaches and he has worked with the team. We have done all our preparation as if he was our number one. Now the rest is up to him to produce a good performance.’
Eddie Howe has insisted that no special precautions have been taken for Loris Karius on his return to English football.
Both Nick Pope (left) and Martin Dubravka (right) were unable to participate in the final.
The Carabao Cup final marks Karius’ first game for an English club since the 2018 Champions League final
First-choice goalkeeper Nick Pope would have been the first name on the squad sheet for the match at Wembley, but his red card for touching the ball outside the box in the club’s Premier League loss to Liverpool saw him suspended.
Meanwhile, former Newcastle number 1 Martin Dubravka is ineligible for the game because he already played for a different team during the competition – ironically, he came during a loan spell with the Magpies’ opponents in the final.
Speaking before the game, Jamie Carragher explained that he hoped Karius could put in a solid performance to put the memories of his 2018 final behind him.
“I hope he’s doing well, just from a human perspective, what happened was not pretty.” He had a nightmare game in the most important game in world football. That could happen to anyone. He hasn’t played for a long time and that’s a bigger problem.
Karius endured a nightmare performance in kyiv, making two mistakes as Liverpool lost 2-1
The 29-year-old never played for the Reds again, joining Newcastle on a free transfer this summer.
Karius joined Newcastle in the summer on a free transfer after his contract at Anfield expired after six years with the club.
After reclaiming his right to be Jurgen Klopp’s first choice during his second season on Merseyside, the former Mainz star’s momentum came to a screeching halt after the fateful night in Kiev.
The following summer, Klopp would break the world transfer record for a goalkeeper to sign Allison, and Karius would not appear for the club again.
Before joining Newcastle, Karius would go on loan, spending two years in Turkey with Besiktas and a single Bundesliga campaign with Union Berlin as Andreas Luthe’s back-up.