Liverpool hero who left club in summer confirms shock retirement aged 33

Joel Matip retires from football at the age of 33.

The defender, who last played for Liverpool, became a free agent this summer after leaving the Reds but did not join a new club.

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Three months after his contract at Anfield expired, his football career is over.

Ex-club Schalke and Hamburger were both linked with a move for the centre-back.

Liverpool released a statement confirming he had now retired.

Matip played 258 games for Schalke 04, the club where he transitioned to the professional game.

The Cameroon star joined Liverpool on a free transfer in 2016 after leaving the German side and became a firm favorite on Merseyside.

During his time at the club, Matip made 201 appearances and was a mainstay in Jurgen Klopp’s side.

As a centre-back he formed a formidable partnership with Virgil van Dijk, which provided the basis for so much success.

That included success in the Champions League in 2019 and winning the Premier League in 2020.

Matip also won the FA Cup, EFL Cup, Community Shield and UEFA Super Cup during his time with the Reds.

Despite being a core player under Klopp, Matip was unable to play a major role in the German’s retirement after suffering a cruciate ligament injury against Fulham on December 3 last year.

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That was the last match of the 33-year-old’s career after he failed to return to fitness.

Paying tribute to Matip after he left Liverpool, Klopp said: “In all the years I have been involved in football, I am not sure I have come across too many players more loved than Joel Matip. I’m not even sure it would be possible to say anything bad about him.

“A great professional, a great footballer and a great human being – we are blessed to have had him with us for so long and all we can do now is wish him the best as he sets out in a new direction.

“Joel’s qualities as a player are visible to everyone and as a club we have benefited from this from the first moment he joined. I don’t think he’s had too many headlines over the years, but he’s always been a very famous figure within our group.

“I’ve said before that if there was one person who wouldn’t mind being underestimated it would be Joel, but the truth is we couldn’t have rated him any higher. He has set standards not only for himself but for others and this is one of the main reasons why his time here has been so successful.”