Simon Mignolet claims the competition that the signing of Loris Karius brings doesn’t phase him at all, insisting that it will only make both him and the team better, as reported by ESPN.
Jurgen Klopp signed the 22-year-old shot-stopper last month, with the Liverpool boss clearly drawing from his many years experience in the Bundesliga to get his transfer business done.
Despite costing just £4.7m (via ESPN), Karius comes with a great reputation and looks to be a quality keeper. Mingolet’s starting spot is anything but guaranteed, but the Belgian feels the competition will not only motivate him and make him a better player, but will help make the squad as a whole stronger.
“For me if there’s competition, it’s always good for a team to be at the highest level,” he said (via Belgian outlet DH).
“Here it’s the same. With all the players that we have, for every place and every position there are two players going for it.
“Competition only allows you to improve individually — you become better.”
Mignolet only signed a contract extension in January (via ESPN), which suggests Klopp has plenty off faith in the 28-year-old. When asked if he had been guaranteed a starting spot next season though, he pointed out that in the modern game nobody can be sure of their place in the side.
“I don’t think you get a guarantee at any club in any position,” he continued.
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Mignolet has had mixed success since moving to Merseyside, but we’ve all seen what he’s capable of. He’s arguably suffered due to a lack of competition, with complacency potentially setting in knowing he only had the likes of Brad Jones to compete with in the past. Hopefully Karius’ arrival will change that, and as Mignolet predicts both players will be spurred on to improve.