One of the most surreal parts of what was an excellent season for Newcastle United was the sight of Loris Karius in goal at Wembley during the Carabao Cup final.
Having only arrived at the club in September, the 29-year-old was called into action for the Manchester United game after a suspension to Nick Pope, with Martin Dubravka cup-tied.
The first time Karius had appeared for an English team since the infamous Champions League final of 2018 for Liverpool, the German restarted his career as a result.
Indeed, Inter Milan have even been linked with a move for Karius, who will see his contract expire at Newcastle shortly.
It seems, however, Eddie Howe may step in.
Eddie Howe wants to keep Loris Karius at Newcastle
According to The Athletic, Howe is eager to keep Karius at Newcastle next season.
Despite the goalkeeper only making one appearance for the club, the Magpies chief is understood to have held talks over the prospect of him staying.
Staff are believed to have been impressed with his performance at Wembley, although Karius is far from certain to stay.
It is claimed interest from Italy complicates matters and the player is considering all his options at this stage.
Trust in Howe over Karius
Clearly, Howe has seen something behind closed doors at the training ground.
While Karius has hardly featured this season, he has clearly had an impact upon Howe if the Magpies chief wants him to stay. Given how well all the decisions have gone in regards to recruitment since the takeover, that judgement can hardly be questioned.
With Nick Pope the defined No.1 for the team, Karius isn’t particularly likely to feature all that often anyway, so it would unlikely have too big an impact on the starting XI.
Newcastle have been good for Karius, giving him a chance to rebuild his career. Now, it seems as if it is up to him to repay that favour.
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