Joel Matip: Liverpool's Bargain Defensive Signing Set for a Standout 2016-17

Becoming the third signing of Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool reign back in February, Cameroon international defender Joel Matip represented something of a change in emphasis from the German—as in sealing his free transfer from Bundesliga side Schalke 04, the Reds manager made the first significant alteration to his new squad.

Matip's arrival followed a move to bring Steven Caulker to the club on a short-term loan and a deal to sign Serbian midfielder Marko Grujic for £5.1 million, with the former little more than emergency and the latter representing one for the future.

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Also signalling the departures of long-serving centre-back Martin Skrtel and veteran Kolo Toure, who joined Fenerbahce and Celtic respectively this summer, Matip's acquisition presented a changing of the guard.

After his pre-season was stalled by a frustrating ankle injury, Matip made his Premier League debut in the Reds' third outing of 2016/17—last weekend's 1-1 draw away to Tottenham Hotspur.

Now looking to establish himself as a key player within Klopp's defensive line, Matip can hope to build on that performance—with his full debut coming days earlier, in Liverpool's 5-0 win at Burton Albion in the EFL Cup—and on the early evidence, the 25-year-old has all the tools to do so.

Matip is poised to enjoy a breakthrough campaign on Merseyside in 2016/17 and could prove to be one of the bargains of the summer across England's top flight. 

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Though Caulker was likely the best of the short-term options available to Klopp at centre-back in January, and interest in Grujic was largely propelled by the 49-year-old's assistant Zeljko Buvac, according to the Liverpool Echo's James Pearce, Matip was a player with whom the manager was already familiar.

Matip joined Schalke from VfL Bochum in 2000, and after nine years progressing through the academy ranks to follow in the footsteps of Mesut Ozil, Manuel Neuer and Benedikt Howedes, he swiftly established himself as a key player in Gelsenkirchen.

This saw him line up regularly against Klopp's Borussia Dortmund, making 10 appearances for Schalke in the Revierderby, notably scoring the opener in a 2-1 victory towards the start of the 2014/15 campaign.

Defeat to Schalke heaped pressure on Klopp as he led his side through a disappointing start to his final season at Dortmund, with DW.com's Jonathan Harding describing the BVB's defensive display as "more like Sunday league than Sunday best."

Matip amassed 258 senior appearances over seven seasons in the Schalke first team, scoring 23 goals and laying on 14 assists, underlining his status as one of the Bundesliga's best young defenders.

As Klopp told reporters on the announcement of the player's signing, this made him great value for money:

"

I am very happy. Everybody who knows him would have been interested. Maybe he’s not the most famous player in England, but he’s 24 and has played about 200 Bundesliga games for Schalke.

He is a top-class centre-half, very young but experienced. You don’t have that too often. To be honest, when I had my break I thought for the next club, I should think about Joel, if there was a need.

[...]

It’s a transfer with a really good perspective for the future, a long-term thing. But he can help immediately and that’s really good for us.

"

While he was unable to sign him during his time at Dortmund, Klopp had earmarked Matip as a priority target for his next club—and that proved to be Liverpool, leaving the red half of Merseyside to benefit.

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When Matip signed for Liverpool, Klopp's decision represented a swelling of strength in the ranks—despite the impending departures of Skrtel and Toure—with his addition hugely positive.

With Dejan Lovren and Mamadou Sakho enjoying a bright spell at the heart of defence in the latter months of 2015/16 and Joe Gomez shining in his performances for the club before injury, Matip was poised to bolster Klopp's options, allowing an interchange of talent without sacrificing quality.

Now, however, with Klopp's stance changing over the course of the summer, Matip's development and successful adjustment to life in the Premier League seems more of a necessity than a slow-burning luxury.

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Largely, this came with a discrepancy between the German and Sakho, ostensibly stemming from the Frenchman failing a UEFA drug test in April, after an ill-advised move to take fat-burning pills not sanctioned by the club. The Frenchman was eventually exonerated, but this arguably showed a lack of regard for Liverpool's sports science department.

Sakho was then sent home early from Liverpool's pre-season tour of the United States, with Klopp telling reporters that "he missed the departure of the plane, he missed a session and then was late for a meal," before stressing "we have some rules and we have to respect them."

While Sakho's emphatic performances at centre-back since his move from Paris Saint-Germain in 2013—paired with his enthusiasm and selfless work within the local community—had made him a cult hero with the Anfield support, Klopp clearly took a different approach.

Along with Tiago Ilori and Andre Wisdom, Sakho was surplus to requirements heading into 2016/17, with Klopp instead moving to sign Estonia captain Ragnar Klavan from FC Augsburg.

Klavan, aged 30 and with little experience of operating on a stage as demanding as the Premier League, arrived as Klopp's third choice, ensuring Matip was left to join Lovren as part of the manager's ideal pairing. 

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Despite his time in the Bundesliga with Schalke, a pre-season disrupted by injury present Matip with a major challenge in his first campaign as Liverpool's No. 32, but as he proved in his league bow against Spurs, he is up to the task.

Matip brings strength, aerial dominance and a high positional intelligence to the Reds' back line, knowing when to step out and make a front-footed challenge, and when to drop off and utilise his reading of the game to break up moves.

Furthermore, as he showcased at White Hart Lane and against Burton, Matip boasts a keen attacking sensibility, regularly driving out of defence to support the midfield charge.

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He is also adept with the ball at his feet, with both of his competitive outings for the Reds so far highlighting his willingness to play quick, vertical passes from defence to attack—in a similar way to Sakho's approach in possession.

As Lovren told the club's official website at the end of August, Matip and Klavan have both "adapted quite quickly" and "understand the plan and the meaning of Jurgen, what he wants during training and the games."

The Croatian paints an interesting polarisation between Sakho's position under Klopp and that of Matip and Klavan, with the new arrivals enjoying an understanding with their manager that the No. 3 does not.

Presented with a baptism of fire after recovering from injury, Matip must now quickly find his feet within the Liverpool back line.

However, backed by considerable experience in Klopp's former battleground of the Bundesliga and showing his confidence against Burton Albion and Spurs, the 25-year-old is set for a standout season in 2016/17—and having signed on a free transfer this summer, he can prove himself a bargain in doing so.

Jack Lusby will be covering Liverpool throughout 2016/17 as one of Bleacher Report's lead correspondents. Statistics via WhoScored.com and Transfermarkt.co.uk.

Follow Jack on Twitter @jacklusby_ and Facebook here.