Liverpool sign Loris Karius from Mainz to take No1 spot

Liverpool have completed the signing of Loris Karius from Jürgen Klopp's former club Mainz in £4.7m deal. Klopp wants the 22-year-old goalkeeper to increase the competition with Simon Mignolet for next season.

Karius, who spent time with Manchester City as a teenager, has signed a five-year contract at Anfield and will wear the No1 shirt with Mignolet happy to stick with his current No22.

The German is Klopp's third signing since taking over in October, having secured deals in January for the Schalke centre-back Joel Matip and the Red Star Belgrade midfielder Marko Grujic to join this summer.

“It’s a very good feeling and it’s an honour to play for a club like this,” Karius told liverpoolfc.com. “I know a lot about the club from watching them on TV. The history, everybody who plays football knows. There are a lot of things in my head when I think of this club.

“I spoke to the manager and I had a good feeling afterwards because he told me what he wants to do with the club and with the players. It was a good talk with him and after that I was convinced this was the right decision.”

The former Borussia Dortmund manager Klopp has returned to Germany for the second time to bolster his squad. “I am delighted we have signed Loris, he has had a fantastic season with Mainz and has developed into a very good goalkeeper since his return to Germany,” he said.

“I am really pleased that we were able to move so quickly to get him and that Loris has shown such a desire to come to Liverpool with a lot of other clubs interested in him.

“I know he will add to the quality we have in this position and I look forward to working with him and all our players when we return for pre-season.”

Next on Liverpool's list of targets is the Leicester City left-back Ben Chilwell, for whom they are prepared to offer £4m up front with some add-ons. Martin Skrtel looks poised to depart, with the Turkish side Besiktas leading the race for the centre-half.

Kolo Touré, whose deal expires next month, could yet earn a new short-term contract should Mamadou Sakho’s failed drugs test lead to a lengthy ban.

However, the promising Spanish midfielder Sergi Canos, who impressed on loan at Brentford this season and was handed his Liverpool debut in their penultimate match of the campaign, seems destined to leave this summer. It is understood the 19-year-old has told the club he wants to leave after contract negotiations stalled and, while there has been interest from clubs in Portugal, the player is keen for a permanent move to London, with Watford and Queens Park Rangers potential destinations.

(Guardian service)