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Ex-Liverpool keeper Loris Karius signs with struggling Schalke

Former Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius has signed with second-division German club Schalke in an attempt to revive his career.

Karius was widely criticised for an error-ridden performance in the 2018 Champions League final in which his mistakes cost Liverpool a 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid. Doctors later concluded he had suffered a concussion during the game.

This would be his last match for Liverpool despite remaining at the club under contract until 2022.

The 31-year-old was without a club since being released by Newcastle at the end of last season before signing with Schalke, who are struggling in the second division after years of financial problems.

Karius has signed a contract until the end of the season, Schalke said, but he isn't guaranteed to play.

"Loris is fit and can start training with the team straight away," the club's sporting director Youri Mulder said, but added he was only the "challenger" for now behind first-choice keeper Justin Heekeren.

"The talks with the club's representatives all went very well and I'm looking forward to training with the team," Karius said in a statement. "Schalke 04 are a big club with very passionate fans, something that I was able to get a sense for already on my previous visits here as a player."

Since the end of a loan to Besiktas in 2020, Karius has played just seven competitive games in the last four-and-a-half years for Union Berlin and Newcastle.