Inside Carabao Cup final keeper Karius’ unlikely friendship with Justin Bieber after popstar complimented his tattoos
LORIS KARIUS became friends with Justin Bieber after the popstar complimented his tattoos.
The goalkeeper is set to make his Newcastle debut in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
Karius has got his chance thanks to Nick Pope’s suspension, while Martin Dubravka is cup tied.
The shot-stopper has the opportunity become a Toon legend and he could be cheered on by Bieber.
The pair met on holiday in Miami in 2015 and exchanged numbers before agreeing to go to a concert together.
Karius shared the story in 2016 saying: “We just met on holiday randomly last year.
“We were staying at the same place in Miami. He liked my tattoos. He was asking me about them and then we got talking. That’s how it started.”
Karius enjoys the high life and is dating sports presenter Diletta Leotta, who has 8.6million Instagram followers.
The pair jetted off to Milan this week where they were spotted on a casual lunch date.
And in December they dressed to the nines for a Christmas dinner and Karius often shows off alongside his girlfriend to his 1.8m Instagram followers.
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The German has had to find things away from football to keep himself occupied as he has not played a competitive game for two years.
Newcastle fans are fearing the worst but Eddie Howe believes the final gives Karius a brilliant chance to resurect his career.
The Magpies boss said: “It would be a magnificent chance for him to rewrite the story of his career. There’s been loads of stories through the times in football where these things have happened and there’s been a really positive outcome – or not.
“As soon as it happened (Pope’s red card) there was a feeling of whether there was another page in Karius’ career to write. Who knows what that chapter will look like?
“That’s the beauty of football. We never know what is going to happen. This unpredictability is what makes it such an amazing thing to watch.”