Micah Richards shares text message he sent Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius after Liverpool mistakes in final vs Real Madrid

It’s been almost seven years since former Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius' infamous howlers in the 2018 Champions League final between the Reds and Real Madrid. The German stopper will forever be remembered for the wrong reasons by many Liverpool faithful, with the game ending 3-1 in Los Blancos' favor.

Naturally, the German shot-stopper was dejected after the match as his errors proved costly. Karius was loaned out to Besiktas that summer and his career has been on a downward spiral since that time.

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards recently revealed what he told Karius after the Real Madrid game. The pair came through the ranks at City together, and Richards said he urged the goalkeeper to keep his head up after the game.

Micah Richards said on BBC Match of the Day 10 Podcast (via TBR Football):

“Karius, he came through the youth at Man City with me actually, he’s a couple of years younger than me. I just text him saying keep your head up, I text him yeah. He was distraught. He was better than that. There were two mistakes weren’t they? One where it went through his hands and one where he rolled it to Benzema.”

On May 26, 2018, Liverpool faced Real Madrid in Kyiv, Ukraine, in the final of the 2017/18 Champions League. This was their second final of Europe’s premier club competition after their initial meeting in the 1981 European Cup final.

A rampant Liverpool side had the uphill task of pipping a Los Blancos side that had won the competition in the previous two seasons. After a goalless first half, Loris Karius made a costly mistake.

In the 51st minute, the goalkeeper committed a blunder while attempting to make a low throw to a teammate only to be outsmarted by Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema, who stuck out his right leg and sent the ball into the net.

Sadio Mane restored parity for Liverpool four minutes later but Gareth Bale gave Madrid the lead in the 63rd minute. Seven minutes from time, Karius committed another costly error as he was unable to hold Bale’s long-range strike, which made it 3-1.

What Gareth Bale told Loris Karius after the 2018 UCL final between Liverpool and Real Madrid

Gareth Bale discarded rivalry after Real Madrid secured a 3-1 win over Liverpool in the 2018 UCL final and showed sympathy to then-under-fire goalkeeper Loris Karius. In a surprising show of support, both Bale and Micah Richards conveyed the same message to Karius, urging him to "keep his head up."

Gareth Bale said (via the Daily Mail):

"I just said [to Karius], 'keep your head up'. Mistakes happen. It's just unfortunate it's in a final. Yes, I suppose it's not quite as bad as it looked but I suppose he should save it."

Bale came in as a substitute in the match, replacing Isco in the 61st minute, and scored twice to give Los Blancos a famous win.