Dejan Lovren absolves Loris Karius of blame for Champions League final howlers

Liverpool centre-back Dejan Lovren has insisted that he and his teammates will rally behind Loris Karius following the goalkeeper's night to forget against Real Madrid.

Karius was at fault for two of the opposition's three goals in the Champions League final clash, leaving him in tears come full time of the 3-1 defeat.

The 24-year-old saw an attempted throw diverted back into his own net by Karim Benzema for the first of his howlers, before letting a long-range strike from Gareth Bale slip through his grasp and over the line.

Lovren is the latest Liverpool player to attempt to absolve Karius of any blame, though, stressing that the team 'win together and lose together'.

"It's heartbreaking. Something we never saw in our heads before the game," he is quoted as saying by BBC Sport. "They scored a goal, surprisingly I would say, and we tried to come back but [then Bale] scored one of the best goals I've ever seen.

"People will point fingers at the goalkeeper but we win together, we lose together. We will stick behind him. I feel sorry for the fans, I wish we could do better. We promise we will come back even stronger next year."

Merseyside Police are investigating a number of death threats aimed at Karius on the back of Saturday's defeat in Kiev.