Joel Matip signed for Liverpool from Schalke 04 in 2016. Ever since, he has made 152 appearances for the club in all competitions, winning the Premier League, the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup. He often partners with Virgil van Dijk in the centre of Liverpool’s defense but is not as highly rated as the Dutch centre-back. However, Van Dijk himself has come out to express his admiration for the Cameroonian.
Virgil van Dijk Wishes He Had Similar Qualities as Liverpool Teammate Joel Matip
Virgil van Dijk Could Not Hold Back His Admiration for Joel Matip After 6-0 Win
Matip produced a spectacular performance as Liverpool recorded a 6-0 Premier League win over Leeds United. Speaking to Liverpool’s official website after the game, here is what Van Dijk said concerning Matip’s ball-carrying skills;
“It’s a big quality of him – I wish I had that quality at times!
“He just can go without any fear at all and hope for the best a little bit! But he has that quality. It’s a big strength of him and obviously it’s useful because it drags other players from their position and today obviously the space was there to make that run and finish it off.
“I said to him already before the game I felt it coming because he had an assist for Diogo [Jota] and I said, ‘A goal is next!’ so I’m obviously very happy for him.
He added;
“I think also himself [Matip], mentally he is at a good place.
“I think the four of us, because we cannot forget Joe [Gomez], who is obviously not even in the squad at the moment, but four of us are keeping each other as sharp as we can.
“We need everyone and obviously it’s very good to see that he is fit, he is playing on a high level and whether I play with him, Ibou [Konate] or Joe, it’s always good to be out there together and work hard.”
Liverpool currently have 60 points from 26 games and sit on second place in the Premier League table, just three points below leaders Manchester City.
Main Image Credit Embed from Getty Images
Comments are closed.