Steve McManaman heaped praise on Liverpool defender Joel Matip when asked about Jurgen Klopp’s remarks on the centre-back.
The Liverpool manager gushed about Matip in his press-conference ahead of his side facing Sheffield United and claimed signing the centre-back was possibly one of the “best pieces” of businesses the club had done in recent years. (Source: BBC Sport)
McManaman seemed to share Klopp’s high view of Matip as he described the 28-year-old as a superstar who has been nothing short of brilliant for Liverpool.
“Let’s be honest, he’s been nothing short of brilliant,” said McManaman while commentating on Liverpool’s clash with Sheffield United (BT Sport 1, Saturday, September 28th, 12:36).
“Big transfer from German, he’s been a superstar hasn’t he? Made that position his own.”
OPINION
Matip arguably gets overshadowed by his defensive partner Virgil van Dijk so it’s nice to hear him get singled out for praise. It’s worth noting that given that Van Dijk constantly finds himself nominated for accolades such as overall best male player of the year following his 2018/19 campaign, it is hard not to get forgotten about or overlooked when stood next to him. However, it says a lot about how good Matip’s recent performances are that he is able to start emerging from his teammate’s shadow slightly by having the likes of McManaman gush about him. The 28-year-old has regularly featured in the Premier League this season and has done more than enough to justify his place in the starting XI. Matip has averaged an impressive 5.2 clearances per match as well as averaged two tackles and two interceptions per game and has come to his side’s rescue on numerous occasions (Source: WhoScored). The Reds may have struggled to rack up clean sheets for fun this season, but if you took Matip out the side, you’d worry how many more goals Liverpool would ship without him.
