Liverpool pay tribute to Joel Matip as much-loved defender retires aged 33

Joel Matip has announced his retirement from professional football mere months after parting ways with Liverpool at the end of June when his contract expired.

During a successful eight-year tenure at Anfield, Matip clinched an impressive haul of silverware including the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, two League Cups, the Club World Cup, and Super Cup.

The end of the 33-year-old's career was marred by a severe ACL injury sustained last December during a thrilling 4-3 victory against Fulham, which led to successful surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation process.

Despite engaging in discussions with several top-flight German teams, including Bundesliga titans Bayer Leverkusen, Matip has opted to conclude his playing days.

With a total of 201 appearances for Liverpool, Matip was a pivotal yet often underrated figure in Jurgen Klopp's squad, having joined on a free transfer from Schalke in 2016.

His international career saw him earn 27 caps for Cameroon, participating in both the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, before retiring from national duties in 2016.

Liverpool have expressed their gratitude and well-wishes to their former centre-back through a heartfelt message on the club's social media channels: "Everybody at LFC wishes Joel and his family the very best for the future."

Matip's departure marks the second retirement of a Liverpool player released this summer, following in the footsteps of midfield virtuoso Thiago Alcantara, who also hung up his boots after a prolonged struggle with injuries.

Klopp previously paid tribute to Matip and his contribution to Liverpool's success under his stewardship back in May, stating: "In all the years that I have been involved in football, I am not sure I have come across too many players who are more loved than Joel Matip.

"I'm not even sure it would be possible to say anything bad about him. A wonderful professional, a wonderful footballer and a wonderful human being we have been blessed to have him with us for as long as we have and now all we can do is wish him well as he heads off in a new direction.

"Joel's qualities as a player are there for all to see and as a club, we have benefited from them since the first moment that he joined.

"I don't think he has had too many headlines over the years but he has only ever been a very famous figure within our group.

"I have said before that if there was one person who wouldn't care if he was underrated it would be Joel, but the truth is we could not have rated him more highly.

"Not only has he set the standards for himself, he has set them for others and this is one of the main reasons why his time here has been so successful."