It is often said that goalkeepers peak later than outfield players, and Loris Karius will certainly be hoping that theory rings true as he turns 30.
The German can already look back on a career full of twists, turns and what might have been. However, as he watches the likes of Gigi Buffon and Pepe Reina continue to play into their fifth decade, the former Liverpool man has examples to follow as he looks to rise back to the top.
When Newcastle announced their retained list ahead of the 2023-24 season, they confirmed Karius has been offered a new deal to continue at St James's Park. After beginning his Premier League redemption arc last term, might this just be the beginning of a glorious new chapter?
As a youngster, Karius was given a chance at a number of different academies. Among them was that of Manchester City, where he joined from Stuttgart and was on the books from 2009-11 but left for Mainz without making a senior appearance.
"At 16, you could sign your first professional contract," Karius said in 2020. "I had offers from all sorts of clubs back then, but Manchester City went out of their way to help me. They showed me a concrete plan, e.g. how I can make it to the professionals.
“That fascinated me. But I could just as well imagine staying in Stuttgart - but the concept and the plan with me did not convince me as much as that of Man City. So I said to myself: I'm going to take the challenge and I'm going to England.”
The decision to return to Germany with Mainz looked like a good one as he made his debut as a teenager before establishing himself as first-choice in his early twenties. Karius' breakout season in 2013-14 came when Liverpool were pushing for the Premier League title with Simon Mignolet between the sticks, and the two would later rival one another for a starting spot.
Brendan Rodgers, the man behind the Reds' second-place finish in 2014, made way for Jurgen Klopp less than 18 months later. The former Borussia Dortmund boss kept faith with Mignolet to begin with, but turned to Karius in a £4.75m deal in his first summer transfer window at Anfield.
Mignolet started the bulk of Liverpool's Premier League games in 2016-17, though, with Karius playing 16 times in all competitions. One of those outings was a 4-3 defeat at Bournemouth in which his performance attracted criticism, but Klopp stood by his compatriot.
“I have no concerns [with Karius]," Klopp said. "If you make mistakes, you get criticised. That’s what happens in life, so I have no problem with that.
"So if people want to say we’re blind, silly, not good enough, then do it. We missed chances today but do we have good strikers? Yes we do. And the last goal was not easy for a goalkeeper. It says nothing about him as a goalkeeper. It happens."
Karius featured more the next season, and had done enough to earn a start in the Champions League final against Real Madrid after playing in every single minute of the run to Kyiv. The dream quickly became a nightmare, though, and the final would end up being his final game for the club.
After suffering a first-half concussion, Karius found himself at fault for two of Madrid's three goals. Karim Benzema intercepted an attempted throw out for the first, and - after Sadio Mane and Gareth Bale exchanged goals - the keeper failed to deal with a long-range effort from Bale for the Spaniards' clincher.
"Loris Karius knows it, everybody knows it," Klopp said after the defeat. "That is a shame in a game like this, in a season like this. I feel for him, he is a fantastic boy. The second mistake is because of the first one.
"I only had a few words with him afterwards but no body wants those mistakes. We will deal with it and of course we will be with him."
Despite the public show of support, though, Liverpool let their money do the talking. Alisson joined from Roma that same summer, and Karius was loaned out to Besiktas after making just one matchday squad at the start of the new season.
In Turkey, Karius was able to get games under his belt. A permanent move had looked possible, only for a row with the owners over unpaid wages to cut his spell short. Another loan followed, this time to Union Berlin, but regular minutes were harder to come by in the Bundesliga.
In 2021, at the age of 28, he found himself in the wilderness as the final year of his Liverpool contract came and went without a minute of football, and it wasn't until September 2022 that he got his next move as Newcastle turned to him after an injury crisis.
"It's a good opportunity for me and a great project to be part of," he said after joining Eddie Howe's side. "It didn't take me long to make a decision.
"Newcastle have a great coach and play really attractive football. I felt it was the right project for me and I'm excited to work with the coaches and my new teammates."
Karius sat on the Newcastle bench throughout October, but made way when Karl Darlow returned from injury. Martin Dubravka's recall from a loan at Manchester United in January meant the new arrival was still third choice, even as Darlow spent the second half of the season with second-tier Hull.
With that set-up, it would have taken a remarkable coincidence to give Karius a chance of first-team football. Remarkably, that's just what happened when starting keeper Nick Pope handled outside his box in a Premier League game against Liverpool and was sent off.
Had that offence happened in any other game, Dubravka would have stepped in. Instead, though, it occurred just before the Carabao Cup final against Man Utd. The Slovakia international was cup-tied, having played in the competition for United during his loan, freeing up Karius to make his first appearance for an English club in more than four years.
Karius did himself proud, but Newcastle ended up losing 2-0 at Wembley. That remains his sole appearance for the club, but his comments after the game show where his priorities lie.
"It’s really fun when you’re at the top, but it can be not so much fun when you are at the bottom," he said. "I have experienced both in my career.
“I have learned from everything, and I am still hungry and think I’ve got a lot of years to play. I think I showed that I don’t need to hide or anything, and that I can still perform at this level. If we would have won the cup, it would have been a great story. Unfortunately, it’s not the dream ending, but who knows? Maybe we will be here again next year with Newcastle. Maybe we will play another one, you never know.
“The last week showed me again that, in football, anything is possible, ups and downs. Who knows? I’m not writing anything off. Hopefully, the story will have a very good ending one day.”
After hitting rock bottom at Liverpool, Loris Karius hasn't completed a full turnaround. He has taken his first steps, though, and at 30 years of age he has time to keep climbing.
