Joel Matip has suggested that he wants to remain a Liverpool player beyond the end of the season despite his current deal expiring in the summer.
The 32-year-old was signed as a free agent from German outfit Schalke back in 2016 and has become a hugely popular figure at Anfield.
Matip is a quality player on his day but with him now being the wrong side of 30 and appearing to be somewhat injury prone during his time at L4 it’s unclear as to whether he will be offered a contract extension.
“Of course, Schalke was my youth club – as a Schalke fan it was an absolute honour to play there,” Matip told Sky Germany (as quoted by Sports Mole). “I had the opportunity to do that for a long time and here in Liverpool, with these absolute top conditions, you don’t just walk away.
“In addition, I also feel incredibly comfortable here in my private life. I think it’s desirable not to change clubs all the time. But everyone has to decide for themselves. In any case, I find consistency helpful.
“I’m at an age where I don’t think so much about the future anymore. I try to make the most of every day and don’t look too far ahead. If it was only these two clubs in the end, I would be perfectly happy. But in football, you never know exactly.”
Our No. 32 is a great option to have in reserve but if we’re wanting to compete on all four fronts and pick up silverware he shouldn’t be starting games as he’s now past his best.
Virgil van Dijk and Ibou Konate is Jurgen Klopp’s preferred central defensive partnership with Matip joined by Joe Gomez in reserve.
With van Dijk suspended for our last two games and Konate sidelined with a muscle injury we’ve had to call on our options in reserve in recent weeks with 20-year-old Jarrell Quansah performing superbly at Molineux on Saturday.
Liverpool are believed to be in ‘advanced talks’ to sign Bayer Leverkusen defender Piero Hincapie in January but it remains to be seen whether big Joel will be offered a fresh deal at the end of the season.
His comments appear to suggest that he’s not yet ready to move on from Merseyside but that’s a decision for Klopp and Co. to make.