Former Liverpool star Joel Matip has offered himself to Serie A side Lazio
According to Italian outlet Corriere della Sera (h/t LazioNews24), former Liverpool defender Joel Matip has offered himself to Serie A side Lazio.
Joel Matip was released by the Reds at the end of last season, bringing an end to an eight-year association. Owing to an unfortunate serious knee injury, the centre-back was limited to just 10 Premier League appearances in his final campaign at Anfield.
Upon his release, the ex-Cameroon international is now a free agent and searching for a new home. He is interested in playing in Serie A after having stints in Germany and England. Before his journey with Liverpool, the centre-back rose through FC Schalke’s youth ranks and went on to make 258 senior appearances across all competitions.
The aforementioned report (h/t LazioNews24) claims Lazio President Claudio Lotito has carefully evaluated Matip’s proposal but he is not currently interested in going further since the defender is not deemed to be part of the club’s plans. In recent weeks, the defender’s representatives have also contacted Lazio’s arch-rivals AS Roma over a potential move.
Matip was one of Jurgen Klopp’s first signings as the Liverpool manager. He was snapped up on a free transfer from FC Schalke in 2016 and the centre-back became an integral member of Klopp’s side that went on to win the Champions League in 2018/19 and the Premier League in the following year.
The Bochum-born star made 201 appearances across all competitions over eight seasons at Liverpool, scoring 11 goals and providing six assists. Had it not been for injury problems, he could have easily played over 300 times for the Reds and helped us achieve more success on the pitch, in addition to the Premier League, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, League Cup and FA Cup.
Tall and rangy with good passing, ball-carrying ability and work ethic, Matip would go down as one of the best free transfer signings in the Premier League era. A cult hero adored by his teammates and Klopp, the 32-year-old has left us behind with innumerable memories and happy moments that will not be forgotten for a while.
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Wishing Matip all the best for his next adventure. He is 32 and still capable of competing at the highest level for a couple of years, at least. After an ACL rupture in December 2023, let’s hope he achieves full fitness and finds a new club—perhaps in Italy—as quickly as possible.
