“He always produces” – Rio Ferdinand insists ‘cool’ Liverpool star should now play every game after win over Everton
Rio Ferdinand thinks that Joel Matip should be a regular starter for Liverpool following his 23-minute cameo in the Reds' 2-0 win against 10-man Everton on Saturday (October 21).
Matip came on in the 67th minute of the Merseyside derby at Anfield, replacing Ibrahima Konate. The latter had just escaped a second booking for a foul on Beto and Jurgen Klopp reacted by sending the Cameroonian on.
The veteran defender was tidy in defense, making two clearances and two tackles. It was the performance required for Liverpool to go on to seal a vital win against their arch-rivals.
Ferdinand covered the game with TNT Sports and he felt Matip was unfortunate not to start in the win against Everton. He said:
"He’s unlucky not to start in this team, Joel Matip. He always produces, always plays well. He had a great partnership with Virgil van Dijk a couple of years ago. He looks so cool and calm.”
Matip has eight months left on his contract with the Reds but wants to extend his stay at Anfield. He recently mentioned that he'd be happy to see out the rest of his career with Klopp's side or his boyhood club Schalke (via 90min):
"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 [Schalke and Liverpool] in the end, I would be perfectly happy. But in football, you never know exactly."
The Cameroon international has started six of eight games across competitions this season, helping the Reds keep two clean sheets. He arrived at Anfield in 2016 as a free agent.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp heaps praise on Mohamed Salah after his brace against Everton
Mohamed Salah took his tally for the season to eight goals and four assists in 11 games across competitions. The Egyptian star has consistently been Liverpool's go-to forward for goals and he's won the Golden Boot three times.
Klopp lauded Salah following his double against Everton on Saturday, expressing his amazement at the 31-year-old's goalscoring feats. He stated (via the club's official website):
"Look, what I love most about Mo is… well, maybe mostly I love the numbers! But I think that Mo Salah played for us an incredible amount of fantastic games. Today was not his best game but then [still] being that clinical with the penalty and then staying in the situation, that's probably his biggest quality, and I love that."
Salah has netted 194 goals and 83 assists in 316 games for Klopp's side. He joined the Reds from AS Roma in 2017 for €42 million.