Rio Ferdinand has highlighted Joel Matip's distribution as a point of difference between him and Liverpool teammate Virgil van Dijk.
The Cameroon international has been among those to partner Van Dijk this term.
Jurgen Klopp is now blessed with several centre-halves having signed Ibrahima Konate in the summer.
Joe Gomez is also an option but Matip has started in 21 of Liverpool's 26 Premier League games this term.
Van Dijk is still seen by many as one of, if not the, best central defender on the planet.
But Ferdinand has identified Matip's distribution as an area where he outshines his teammate.
“Matip’s underrated,” he said on his Vibe with Five podcast . “He’s better at passing through the lines than Virgil. He passes through to the strikers much cleaner.
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“But Virgil has got that big switch (of play), it’s a bad weapon.”
Matip's injury record has long been an issue at Anfield.
The defender signed on a free from Schalke back in 2016 and has been in and out of the Liverpool side during his stay, but has looked as good as ever when racking up a consistent run of games this season.
Jurgen Klopp said earlier this season: “Look, I cannot help people who don’t see the quality of Joel Matip.
“That’s true, he was a bit unlucky in the past with an injury here and there – maybe not always the most difficult things but he is a big boy, a big player, tall and it can look from time to time a bit edgy or whatever.
“But he is an incredible player, he was always an incredible player since he joined us at least. So that’s really good."
Matip showed his composure in the final third recently, netting in the 6-0 win over Leeds.
The defender performed a neat one-two before slotting with the confidence of a seasoned striker - something Van Dijk was envious of.
“It’s a big quality of him,” said a buoyant Virgil van Dijk.
“I wish I had that quality at times. He just can go without any fear at all and hope for the best a little bit! But he has that quality.
“It’s a big strength of him and obviously it’s useful because it drags other players from their position and today obviously the space was there to make that run and finish it off."
Liverpool claimed the Carabao Cup on Sunday, beating Chelsea on penalties at Wembley after Matip had a goal ruled out in normal time.
It keeps the Reds on course for a unique quadruple this term.
