'Made a mistake': Gary Neville says Liverpool once had a player who he harshly criticised and he regrets it
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The 2018 UEFA Champions League final turned out to be a tough pill to swallow for Liverpool and Loris Karius.
The Reds were just getting going under Jurgen Klopp but found themselves in the UEFA Champions League final as Real Madrid were aiming for a historic three-peat under Zinedine Zidane.
Liverpool eventually lost 3-1 in Kyiv as a brace from Gareth Bale and one goal from Karim Benzema did the trick for the Spanish giants as Sadio Mane’s goal turned out to be a mere consolation.
Karius endured a forgettable night with two errors, and Gary Neville admits he actually regrets his strong criticism of the former Liverpool goalkeeper ahead of the game.
Gary Neville says he regrets his comments about former Liverpool man Loris Karius
Karius and Simon Mignolet shared goalkeeping duties at the start of the season in what went down as a controversial decision from Klopp as teams usually have a clear number one between the sticks.
Mignolet was never consistent since joining the club from Sunderland and Karius was signed up by the Reds after earning rave reviews for his performances with Mainz.
The German goalkeeper showed his class a handful of times but was guilty of making a few errors over the course of his season as the Anfield faithful were never completely convinced by him.
As the young goalkeeper was finding his feat at the club, Neville criticised him well ahead of the Champions League final, a move he stands to regret today.
“I thought of another one Karius, the Liverpool goalkeeper, the young lad,” said Neville on the Overlap.
“I had been quite direct about him for a period of about two or three months. Liverpool were getting closer under Klopp and getting better and I said they will never, ever win the league with that guy in the net.
“It's a strong line that to a young goalkeeper. It was probably true in the sense that five months later he made a mistake in the Champions League final, it was about three or four months before the Champions League final.
“I go to Italy three or four months later and I was in the gym and was doing a session and this big bloke who is lifting massive weights was in there. I thought it was Karius!
“I thought he could honestly do many things there, had a go at me, but he shook my hand and said it’s nice to see you. It made me think and you feel guilty when you bump into and have given a harsh line to.”
What is Karius up to now?
Karius admitted he shouldn’t have left Liverpool in 2018 as the Reds broke the bank to sign Alisson Becker.
He hasn’t really lived up to his billing after that horrible night in Kyiv, having had spells with Besiktas, Union Berlin and Newcastle United.
Karius is currently a free agent aged 31 and admitted earlier this season that he’s considering the possibility of hanging up his boots.
“If you’ve been out for as long as I have then you obviously have to consider retirement,” said Karius in an interview with SPORTbible.
“I haven't made a decision yet because there’s no need to. I’m still fit. I still have all the potential and the ability.”
