Joel Matip and Thiago Alcantara will leave Liverpool this summer when their contracts expire as Jurgen Klopp will be followed out of Anfield by two of his senior players.
Both will be denied a farewell appearance on Sunday by injury – with Matip out since December with a cruciate ligament problem and Thiago making a lone appearance this season – and Liverpool have opted not to offer them new deals.
But Klopp hailed defender Matip as a player who was loved within the club, but underrated outside it while describing Thiago as “an artist of the game who will only ever paint the most beautiful pictures” and a footballer capable of playing for any team in the world.
Matip, who arrived on a free transfer from Schalke in 2016, was one of Klopp’s first signings and still among the top 10. The centre-back made 201 appearances, starting the 2019 Champions League final win.
“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,” said Klopp.
“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.”
Thiago cost £30m from Bayern Munich in 2020 and has played 98 games in an injury-hit spell at Anfield. His finest form came in 2021-22 when he excelled as Liverpool threatened to win a quadruple and did lift two trophies.
“Before he even came to Liverpool I believed that if you really love football it would make a lot of sense if you watched Thiago Alcantara play,” added Klopp.
“Technically, he is so, so good. A talent who could play in any team in the world and it was a privilege to have him with us. I already knew a lot about him as a footballer before he got here – what he did at Barcelona and Bayern Munich, how could you not? – and I could not have been happier when he decided to take on a new challenge with us.
“From that point on I got to see him up close and all I can say is ‘Wow’. Most importantly, he was part of a new story and helped us develop as a team because of his special qualities.
“I know injuries have been a frustration for him and also for us but the level that he was able to play at when he was available was incredible. This is what I will remember.
“Now he will go in a new direction with his family and we can only wish them well. Wherever he plays next I would be happy to watch. An artist of the game who will only ever paint the most beautiful pictures.”
