Karius affected by concussion in Champions League final: Klopp

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has revealed that goalkeeper Loris Karius was "100 percent" affected by a concussion in their Champions League final loss to Real Madrid.

"We don't use it as an excuse, we use it as an explanation," Klopp was quoted as saying by the club's website.

"For me, it is 100 percent the explanation (for his performance). He was influenced by that knock - that is 100 percent," he added.

Karius' glaring errors led to Real's first and third goals in their 3-1 victory in Kiev in May.

Earlier in the match, Karius collided with Real defender Sergio Ramos with the score goalless.

It was discovered five days later that there were "26 of 30 markers for a concussion" in tests.

Days after the final, a crestfallen Karius had told fans he was "infinitely sorry" for his performance and he later received death threats, prompting a police investigation.

A week later doctors confirmed he had suffered a concussion during the game but Klopp has not spoken about the injury until now.

"If you ask Loris, he says he didn't think about it and didn't use it for a second as an excuse," said Klopp, whose will take a squad including Karius to face Chester City in a pre-season friendly on Saturday.

"From this point of view, from my side everything is fine. We don't think about that any more and we start completely new."

--IANS

dm/tri/vd