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Liverpool star Fabinho has admitted that he studied teammate Joel Matip when he first joined the club.

The Reds signed Brazilian Fabinho back in 2018 for a £40million fee (Guardian), something he’s already paid back in full by being part of a team to win both the Champions League and the Premier League.

Fabinho is a defensive midfielder by trade that is classy in possession and is so intelligent at breaking up play, but he’s commonly been used as an emergency centre-back in the last year due to different injuries within the squad.

With Virgil van Dijk a long-term injury absentee, the 27-year-old has regularly been used in the heart of the Liverpool defence so far this season by manager Jurgen Klopp and looks a natural in the backline.

Fabinho has explained he learned a lot from 29-year-old centre-back Matip and the pair started together in the previous league fixture against Crystal Palace.

“When I first came to Liverpool I identified the areas that I needed to improve and I watched Joel Matip a lot in terms of defending. I have talked and learned from him,” Fabinho told the Daily Mail.

TBR’s View:

Similarly to Manchester City’s Fernandinho, Liverpool enforcer Fabinho makes it look so effortless the way he can drop into either defence or midfield and is one of the most valuable players in the squad for that reason.

It’s no surprise to hear him picking up tips from some quality Reds centre-backs at Anfield and certainly Dutchman Van Dijk must be another he looks towards.

Aged 27, Fabinho looks at the peak of his powers right now and is part of a core group that are driving on another Liverpool title bid.