Karius Keeps His Sheets Clean

Simon Mignolet may be set to join back up with Liverpool soon, but when he does, he may find himself already out of the starting job with Loris Karius given a three-week head-start in pre-season and so far seeming to have adjusted well to life at Liverpool under Jürgen Klopp.

While many expected the 23-year-old, who arrived from FSV Mainz earlier in the summer, might have to wait a few months to beat out Mignolet, spending nearly a month of pre-season as the club’s de facto first choice might just have given Karius the edge. And four clean sheets along the way won’t hurt, either.

"It’s a good thing and it shows we are working well together," said Liverpool’s young German ‘keeper. "Not just at the back but the whole team are working hard, and we have been doing good work in training. It’s not always easy, but that’s how it should be and something is wrong if it’s easy in pre-season."

Though there was some talk of giving youngster Shamal George time in goal on Wednesday, an injury to Lucas Leiva saw the youth player given a cameo up top instead and meant Karius went the full 90 for the second time in pre-season. Along with two halves in the first two games, he’s now up to 270 minutes in red.

"It’s good," he added. "I always enjoy getting game time on the pitch, and the atmosphere was great. It’s always good to win. It wasn’t the perfect game all the time from us, but we managed to keep a clear sheet and score some goals, so it’s a good result."