Liverpool loanee Loris Karius wants to cut short his time on loan in Turkey with Besiktas, according to the Liverpool Echo.
According to Erdal Torunogullari, a Besiktas board member, Karius has filed a complaint with FIFA as a result of the club's decision not to pay players during the coronavirus shutdown.
"He has asked for something he doesn't deserve," Torunogullari said. "He wants the money from the months where he hasn't been playing. ... He wants to leave, and that's his own business. But we do not want to make an unfair payment."
Karius' two-year loan spell in Istanbul was meant to give the keeper a fresh start after an error-strewn run in the Liverpool side left him bereft of confidence. Things have not improved much for him at Besiktas, though, as his habit of making costly mistakes has continued.
Last season in the Europa League, Karius badly misjudged the flight of a cross, which was misdirected toward him and instead of tipping it over the bar, watched it sail over his head into the net. The mistake was one of a few which plagued Karius early on in his tenure at the club, causing some fans to voice their discontent.
Loris Karius doing Loris Karius things!
Besiktas keeper cops freak goal to go 1-0 down at Malmo #OptusSport #EuropaLeague pic.twitter.com/8hY3taJoXi— Optus Sport (@OptusSport) October 4, 2018
"The fans are angry," Turkish football writer Didem Dilmen said. "They are thinking about Utku Yuvakuran, a very young goalkeeper who is waiting to take over from Loris Karius. ... Besiktas fans are saying forget about Karius; we've got no more time for him. Let's go with Utku. If anyone is going to make mistakes, it's better that it's him.
Before the shutdown last month, Karius had conceded 46 goals in 32 games this season and kept eight clean sheets. His bad-luck streak in European play continued as he made headlines with yet another gaffe in September, this time against Slovan Bratislava. Instead of letting the defense handle a long ball from the opposing keeper, he came off his line in a misguided attempt to head it clear. When he missed, the Slovan forward was left with an empty net and plenty of time to score.
Just another Loris Karius error in the #EuropaLeague this time.
The former Liverpool keeper makes a huge blunder to gift Slovan Bratislava the lead against BesiktasIs Karius unfit for European competitions?#UELonStarTimes #EuropaLeagueOnStarTimes pic.twitter.com/HARclq4Ywy
— StarTimes Nigeria (@StarTimes_Ng) September 20, 2019
The Besiktas supporters have subjected the on-loan keeper to a serenade of boos several times this season, and in January he was told by fans to "go home" as the team arrived for an away game. Even his manager, Senol Gunes, heaped pressure on him with critical comments after a game last March.
"He was at fault for the goals he conceded ... Karius has gone a bit stagnant, something is wrong with his electricity, motivation, enthusiasm for the game," Gunes said.
It's somewhat strange to see a manager openly criticize a player struggling for form to the media, and Karius wouldn't have been helped by his boss' suggestion he was only in the team due to a lack of replacements.
"Something is wrong, he has also been unlucky," Gunes claimed after the German's error against Konyaspor. "(He) is talented, but it hasn't worked out and we have a problem. Let me put it this way, if I still had Tolga available, I would play him."
Besiktas will not attempt to sign Karius on a permanent deal when his loan expires at the end of this season, and it remains to be seen where he will be at the start of next term. With Alisson firmly entrenched as the Liverpool No. 1, it's unlikely Karius would return to Merseyside to sit on the bench. He has been linked to Hertha Berlin recently, with the German capital side apparently looking to replace the aging Rune Jarstein and his deputy, Thomas Kraft.
A move back to his home country could be the spark Karius needs to revive his career. While he was never entirely convincing in the red of Liverpool, he has looked a shell of his former self since his infamous pair of mistakes in the 2018 Champions League final. The high-pressure environment at Vodafone Park, where Besiktas was expected to compete for the Süper Lig title, has not helped matters. If a move does come to fruition, a chance for Karius to regain his confidence outside of the spotlight could do the keeper a world of good.
