PSG interest in Joel Matip raises two vital questions

Liverpool will need to answer some Joel Matip questions.

The former Cameroon international has attracted interest from the Ligue 1 giants, according to reports, as they look to replace Thiago Silva this summer.

Joel Matip has been with Liverpool since 2016 when they signed him on a free transfer from Schalke, but they stand to make serious money if the club decide to sell the defender.

Matip’s worth £28.8 million, said Transfermarkt, but you can’t see sporting director Michael Edwards letting him go for anything less than £50 million. The 28-year-old is experienced, he’s won the Champions League and Premier League, and has three more years on his contract.

But if Edwards and Jurgen Klopp did decide to do a deal, they’d have to solve two big problems off the back of that.

The first stems back to Dejan Lovren. Yeah, that’s right, Lovren is still causing us problems despite being all the way in Russia.

His sale has opened up a place in the senior squad for another defender. Sepp van den Berg and Ki-Jana Hoever don’t seem to be near first team football, so the club are going to have to turn towards the transfer market.

It’s been tough enough finding one player to come in as fourth choice, but if Matip is sold the club are going to have to sign two. Bringing in two new players, both of whom are happy to be down the pecking order, get them integrated and up to speed and able to make a positive contribution if required is a big ask.

Transfer fees and wages might also prove to be too expensive. Since Matip and Lovren arrived, Liverpool have won domestic and European honours and you can’t see players coming into the first team squad on bargain contracts.

Someone like Diego Carlos, which would be a big deal, isn’t going to accept being badly paid.

It’s for those two problems, more than anything else, that means Liverpool can’t afford to sell Joel Matip this summer.