Joel Matip retired from professional football in October 2024, at the age of just 33. His final appearance was in December 2023, when he tore his ACL against Fulham, officially ending his Liverpool career. Liverpool did not renew his contract in the summer of 2024, and after months of speculation, no team came for him either. Matip then selected a course that very few modern players take— he left on his own terms.
He moved to the Merseyside in July 2016 on a free transfer from Schalke. He joined Schalke’s academy at just 9 years old. He was no just created at Schalke, but also raised too for his next chapter.
It felt like the end of an era in particular for the Liverpool fans. He was one of Klopp’s most underappreciated pillars. Liverpool fans, by now, would’ve hoped that the club has replaced him well in the French centre back, Ibrahima Konate.
Since his retirement though, he was practically nowhere to be seen or heard about. Fans were in some amount of disbelief as to what he had been upto so far. Until recently, when, his wife, Larissa Matip, happened to post a picture with him on Instagram, which quickly went viral later and the disbelief amongst the fans was cooled down when they came to know that he was doing “just fine”.
Matip has returned to his hometown in Germany. According to sources, he is spending a significant amount of time with his young family, readjusting to the life he left behind when he joined Liverpool almost decade ago. His personality has always been reserved, almost laid back— he was never the celebrity or spotlight hunter.
And after retirement, he has simply remained the same person.
Despite this, fans in Germany – notably Schalke supporters – kept the thought alive that Matip just may offer one final Bundesliga chapter to his boyhood club. This concept was repeatedly floated, until the transfer window closed and the stories made it clear: Matip felt his career was done. He had no realistic intention of coming back from his retirement.
He has completely shut the doors on a professional comeback again.
But apparently, Matip has already returned to the pitch. However, this is not where the cameras are.
He has been reportedly involved in youth coaching at SSV Buer, the club where his son trains. It’s exceedingly compact, low-profile, and not so camera heavy. He isn’t attempting to go right into Bundesliga coaching, media punditry, or the loud TV environment like how the others do.
He is doing it at the most basic level: preparing the next generation along with his son too, perhaps in the same way how he was taught.
This tells us an important point: Matip may eventually work his way up to the position of coach, but not just yet as he is in no hurry to do so.
This, however, does seem to be confirmed as, SSV Buer themselves had put up this photo of Joel Matip on social media:
In a football era where most ex-Premier League players promptly sign media deals, go to countries like Saudi Arabia, USA, etc for one more paycheck, or chase heavily-paid brand endorsements, Joel Matip seems to have done the exact opposite. He has gone home quiet and calm.
He is living in his hometown, Germany, coaching kids for now, preferring family instead of making money from his career, and staying completely away from the cameras. Maybe in the future, he will take on a more official coaching role or maybe he won’t. But the way he has began his post-football life speaks a lot about who he really is as a person.
He played football because he enjoyed the game, not because he loved attention. And even after retirement, he still demonstrates it.
And, Liverpool fans surely do miss him a lot.
Larissa Matip on IG.
— ɴᴡᴀ ʟɪᴠᴇʀᴘᴏᴏʟ🐦🔥 (@ImOliviaPatrick) November 2, 2025
Good to know he's fine, it's been ages😩 pic.twitter.com/8mVw7aebdb
