Matip: We are looking forward to what we can become
Joel Matip accepts that the criticisms he and his Liverpool teammates faced in the aftermath of their defeat to Tottenham Hotspur are part and parcel of playing for a big club.
And the defender remains convinced that the Reds' young squad will learn from disappointments such as that endured at Wembley as they develop together.
Jürgen Klopp's team came under close scrutiny in the aftermath of their 4-1 loss to Spurs, but bounced back in style as Huddersfield Town were beaten 3-0 at Anfield on Saturday.
For Matip, the performance against the Terriers was the only way to respond to a forgettable outing in London.
“At this club the expectations are big,” he said.
“Are the criticisms always deserved? I don’t know, maybe. I don’t have to judge the criticism against us, I only do my best and carry on.
“Against Tottenham, me and the rest of the team made mistakes and we got criticised. This is what it means to belong to a big club, to be a professional footballer.
“A lot of people are looking, they are waiting, and if we don’t perform we expect them to do this. Of course it is tough but it is football.
“We are young, really young, we’re staying together, and we will improve.
“The players in this team, we are looking forward to what we can become, how we can develop, and we enjoy being part of this team.”
LFCTV GO: Watch highlights of the Reds' win over Huddersfield
The giant defender also opened up on the 'honest' team meeting that followed the loss to Mauricio Pochettino's men.
“[Klopp] didn’t hold back, he said it directly,” Matip said.
“He said it was not good enough – he spoke very honestly about the things that have to change, but after this he said we carry on and try to prepare for the next game.
“You can not dwell on it, you have to speak about this then you must move on and improve.”
Liverpool's bid to make amends for their defensive shortcomings against Tottenham suffered a blow just minutes before kick-off against Huddersfield as Dejan Lovren pulled up in the warm-up with a thigh injury.
But Ragnar Klavan proved an able deputy to the Croatian as the Reds kept a clean sheet that Matip found particularly pleasing.
“It was tough losing Dejan in the warm up. Raggy [Ragnar Klavan] did well to come in and be ready, without even a proper warm-up,” he explained.
“Last week our defence wasn’t good. We know that. We got criticised for this, but you can never take it personally, you never let it too close to you.
“You just have to think about what you did, how to change it and improve it, these are the things you must take on board.
“We know we had a lot of problems against Tottenham. I made a lot of problems, I was at fault, I made a number of mistakes, and of course I am not happy. We have to work to get better and defend better every single week.”