Liverpool defender Joel Matip has signed a new five-year deal at the club.
The 28-year-old was nearing the end of the contract he signed following a free transfer move from Schalke in 2016, with the Reds facing the threat of losing him for nothing in 2020.
However, Jurgen Klopp has moved to tie down a player who has emerged as a key man at Anfield in the last sixth months, agreeing an extension that runs until 2024.
Matip arguably started last season as Klopp's fourth-choice centre-half, with Joe Gomez and Dejan Lovren ahead of him in the race to be considered Virgil van Dijk's main partner.
But injuries to both players allowed the former Cameroon international to return to the starting XI at the turn of the year - and he never looked back.
“It’s a great feeling to be a longer part of the club. It’s really just a great feeling," he told the club's official website.
“From outside, you know Liverpool is such a big club – but when you are inside, then you really get a feeling for how big the club is. In all the countries, the supporters are everywhere. It’s a massive and big club that I think every player would want to play for.
“We have a young and talented team and I think every one of us is hungry. Now we’ve seen how it is to win something and we want to have that feeling again.
“There are a lot of things still to achieve. You never know how it will end, you just have to work hard and do the best you can do. Then we will see.
“It is an honour to be a part of the club. It makes me happy that people think I’ve done a good job and they want to keep me.”
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Matip was a vital cog in Liverpool's run to Champions League glory and, on home soil, as they won 97 points in the Premier League last term.
He has also been a mainstay of Klopp's back four this term before missing the last two outings with a knock picked up at Sheffield United.
The defender is expected to return to the starting line-up when the Reds travel to Old Trafford to face Manchester United on Sunday.
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