Goalkeeper 'agrees' Germany move after Newcastle United contract decision

German outlet Bild understands Karius has accepted a contract offer from fallen European giants Schalke, who are currently battling to survive in the second tier of German football.

The 31-year-old shot-stopper, who was managed by Thomas Tuchel at Mainz and Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, joined Newcastle on a free transfer in the summer of 2022 but was limited to just two appearances before being released last summer.

Karius made his debut for the Magpies in the Carabao Cup final in 2023 when he stepped in during a goalkeeper crisis to replace the suspended Nick Pope and the cup-tied Martin Dubravka.

During that final, the German made eight saves against Manchester United, but was unable to deny Marcus Rashford and Casemiro from getting on the scoresheet for the eventual victors in a 2-0 victory for the Red Devils.

The former Manchester City academy star had to wait another 12 months before he got his next chance to start for Newcastle, but found life difficult in between the posts as his injury-hit defence fell to a 4-1 defeat against title hopefuls Arsenal.

Karius, who made 49 appearances for Liverpool, has struggled for first team action for the last six years after making two costly errors for the Reds in a 3-1 Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid in Kyiv.

Prior to his move to Newcastle, he had spent time in Germany with Union Berlin and had also been loaned out to Turkish giants Besiktas.

Karius was the third choice goalkeeper during his time on Tyneside and was reportedly told by his partner Diletta Leotta to leave English football at the end of last season.

Diletta Leotta comments on Loris Karius’ Newcastle exit

Well-known Italian sports presenter Diletta Leotta who tied the knot with Loris Karius at the end of 2024 after welcoming their first child, admitted that she had found it difficult to spend time with the footballer due to her tricky commute from Italy.

'Loris has people at his side who work for him,' the model told Italian newspaper Tuttosport. 'I hope he makes the best decision for his career.

'I live in Milan, so let's say being close to Milan would be ideal for us. I always tell him, players who come to Serie A then fall in love with Italy and often stay there forever. I think that could happen to him too.

'[He should join] Monza or any other team in Italy. I would be happy if he came to Italy to play near his family.

'Newcastle is very inconvenient because there are no direct flights. Neither about Paris nor about Amsterdam.'