Garth Crooks has praised the performance of Joel Matip for Liverpool against Brighton on Saturday.
Crooks included Matip in his Team of the Week column for BBC Sport. The pundit claimed that the 30-year-old stepped out of the shadow cast by his Liverpool teammate, Virgil Van Dijk.
“It’s not often Joel Matip makes my team of the week largely due to his team-mate Virgil van Dijk’s outstanding performances,” wrote Crooks.
“But on this occasion I was compelled to select the former Cameroon international.”
In one sense it’s unfortunate for Matip that he’s ‘the other guy’ next to Van Dijk. The 30-year-old is an incredible defender in his own right, but often slips under the radar as people focus on the indomitable Dutchman.
Joel getting his dues
Not that Joel will mind the limelight evading him, he’s as unassuming as they come.
His relaxed nature and often hilarious reactions to on-pitch matters have made him a cult hero for Liverpool.
But as his Premier League Player of the Month award for February showed, his quality on the pitch is starting to be recognised too.
The centre-back has been truly outstanding for Liverpool for most of the season. What a difference it makes to have him back playing on a regular basis after missing most of the last two seasons.
Injuries to Matip and Joe Gomez have often forced Jurgen Klopp’s hand over the years. Whoever was fit at the time tended to be first-choice next to Van Dijk.
But with both players fit for most of the season, it’s clear that Matip is the manager’s go-to partner for Virgil. On this kind of form, that’s an easy decision to make.
A perfect partnership
Matip’s off-field relationship with Van Dijk also adds to the chemistry the two show on it. As can be seen in Virgil’s incessant teasing of his teammate, the pair are obviously close.
It also helps that they have slightly different, complimentary attributes. Van Dijk is powerful in the air and is an excellent organiser and communicator.
Matip, meanwhile is a rangy defender who benefits from having a more authoritative presence alongside him. Crooks also highlights this in his analysis.
“Matip always seems to be the junior partner when he plays alongside Van Dijk and is often left to do the last-minute blocks and headers off the line while Van Dijk controls the traffic and organises all the other proceedings.”
That may seem a little reductive to Matip’s role as for The Reds. He’s fantastic at starting attacks and has actually regularly out-played Van Dijk in a Liverpool shirt.
But by the same token, we’ve only really seen the best of Matip since he’s played next to Liverpool’s number 4.
The Cameroonian was expected to be the ‘number one’ centre-back when partnered with the likes of Joe Gomez or Dejan Lovren.
Matip always looked uncomfortable in the roll. He seems to excel when the responsibility of organising the back-line is taken away.
Luckily for him, no one organises a defence as well as Van Dijk. But it takes two players to make a truly great defensive partnership. On current form, there can’t be a better one in European football than Liverpool’s brilliant pair.
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