Liverpool finally added defensive reinforcements to their ranks on deadline day, bringing in Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies, and those signings could seriously affect Joel Matip’s standing in the Liverpool squad.
Matip was already the third-choice centre-half at Anfield, behind Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk when they were both fit, but with Kabak and Davies arriving, he could slip further down the pecking order.
Sadly, Matip just can’t seem to put his injury problems behind him, with his most recent injury now ruling him out for the season, and unlike Gomez and van Dijk, who have seemingly suffered freak injuries this term, Matip is having persistent problems that don’t look likely to go away anytime soon.
Unfortunately, Matip hasn’t been reliable enough for Liverpool, and it’s not insane to suggest that he has played his last game for the Reds.
Now, we’re not going to suggest that Kabak and Davies are immediate upgrades on Matip. After all, the Cameroon international has been hailed as ‘world-class’ by Jurgen Klopp in the past, while Davies and Kabak have been playing Championship football and getting relegated from the Bundesliga.
However, they may be more reliable, and there is quite clearly room to grow for both of them.
Kabak is only 20 and very highly rated, and while Davies is a bit older, this is his first chance of playing in the Premier League for a top team, so it remains to be seen what sort of level he can get to.
There’s every chance that those two could usurp Matip in the pecking order, and when you factor in reported summer plans to sign Dayot Upamecano, it looks like Matip could be in trouble.
Injuries, age and reported transfer plans all work against Matip heading into the summer, and it wouldn’t be the biggest shock in the world if the Reds tried to cash in on the 29-year-old this time around.
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