Joel Matip ruins Christmas as West Brom claim a point
Liverpool defender Joel Matip has ruined Christmas.
Whenever the former Cameroon international goes into contact or falls down or takes a deep breath in, Liverpool fans get nervous.
After eight days of rest and recovery between the 7-0 win over Crystal Palace and this fixture against a relegation-threatened side, we thought the boys would be in the best possible shape to secure three points.
What we failed to remember is that Joel Matip is made of glass, and nothing can be taken for granted with him. As if Christmas 2020 couldn’t get any worse, Reds have been gifted the sight of Matip breaking down as one final, late present.
And so it was with a sense of grim inevitability that the centre-back started to clutch the back of his leg and was replaced after just 60 minutes with the inexperienced Rhys Williams.
Not even the introduction of Divock Origi in the 90th minute could rescue a win for Liverpool, who are now faced with the prospect of limping through to the new year with no fit, senior central defenders in the squad.
Williams has done well when he’s been asked to play and Nat Phillips put in a man-of-the-match performance on his debut but getting the youthful pair to perform like that every game is another kettle of fish entirely.
Liverpool will miss Matip’s ability to carry the ball out from the back, while the former Schalke man’s long passing is an important asset to the side as well.
The next four games are against Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Southampton and Manchester United. While the Geordies shouldn’t pose much of a threat due to the awful style of play manager Steve Bruce has imposed on them, Villa, the Saints and Manure can all attack with skill and confidence.
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It’ll be a big ask to get Fabinho to shepherd Williams or Phillips through until someone can be signed in January or Matip comes back. It’s safe to say the big lad has just ruined Christmas.