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The former Liverpool defender has confirmed his retirement at the age of 33.
Joel Matip has been a free agent since leaving Anfield in the summer and is now about to hang up his boots, according to a report from Germany.
Liverpool announced the news on their website on Saturday morning, as they paid tribute to his years of service to the club and his many honours.
Matip, who joined the Reds from German side Schalke in 2016, left the club after spending eight years on Merseyside in May.
He remained a free agent over the summer, despite his impressive career to date and being linked with a return to Schalke and a move to Hamburg.
Joel Matip (fourth from the right) confirmed his surprising retirement from football this Saturday.
Matip spent eight seasons under Jurgen Klopp and is a free agent since leaving Anfield
The club also wished their former player the best on Twitter, sharing the sweet letter: “Congratulations on an excellent career, Joel (raised hand emoji).
'All the best for your retirement (heart emoji).'
Matip was a constant figure in Jurgen Klopp's team for eight years and left with an impressive haul of trophies.
He won seven trophies with the Reds, including a Premier League title, a Champions League, an FA Cup and a League Cup.
Perhaps his biggest moment for Liverpool came in the Champions League final victory over Spurs in 2019, where he set up Divock Origi for his second goal.
The club confirmed his departure in a statement on its website last May, while the defender said goodbye with an emotional message.
Matip received a guard of honor from the Liverpool team after his departure was confirmed
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Paying tribute to Matip after his departure from Liverpool, Klopp said: “In all the years I have been involved in football, I am not sure I have come across many more beloved players than Joel Matip. I'm not even sure it was possible to say anything bad about him.
“A wonderful professional, a wonderful footballer and a wonderful human being. “We have been lucky to have him with us for so long and now all we can do is wish him the best as he takes a new direction.”
“Joel's qualities as a player are there for all to see and, as a club, we have benefited from them from the moment he first joined. I don't think he's had many headlines over the years, but he's always been a very famous figure within our group.
“I've said before that if there was one person who wouldn't mind being underestimated it would be Joel, but the truth is we couldn't have rated him higher. He has not only set standards for himself, but he has also set standards for others, and this is one of the main reasons why his time here has been so successful.'
Share or comment on this article: The former Liverpool ace confirms his surprise retirement at the age of just 33, after the star still found himself without a club five months after leaving Anfield.
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