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Life after Liverpool is not always especially good for those players and staff who choose to move on.

The Reds have seen numerous examples of players leaving for what they assume to be better things, only to be brought back down to earth quickly.

While this could not exactly be said of former Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders, it is fair to deduce that the Dutchman had things much easier at Anfield.

After leaving Liverpool with Jurgen Klopp in May 2024, Lijnders has had a strange ride.

Initially joining RB Salzburg in his second job as a head coach, the 44-year-old was promptly sacked after just five months with the Austrians.

Bizarrely, Lijnders is set to join Pep Guardiola at Manchester City as he takes on the role of number two once again.

Ironically, the man who Lijnders took with him to Salzburg as his own second-in-command, Vitor Matos, is now set to land a managerial job of his own.

Photo by John Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images

Matos was highly rated during his time at Liverpool, and had been expected to take on a greater role under Lijnders at Salzburg.

However, after the Dutch boss was handed his P45, Matos stated his ambition to become a manager in his own right.

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And according to Portuguese outlet A Bola, the 37-year-old is all set to fulfil his aim.

They claim that Matos is set to take over as the manager of second division Portuguese side Maritimo.

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The agreement between the former Liverpool coach and Maritimo is said to be ‘almost complete,’ with Matos set to take over on a two-year contract.

The Portuguese is reportedly still being paid by Salzburg following his exit, but once the process of settlement is complete, Matos will be announced in his first ever managerial job.

It’s claimed that the young coach was even approached by various top division Portuguese sides, but it is Maritimo who have convinced Matos to take the helm.

While Lijnders heads back into an assistant role, it will be fascinating to see how Matos gets on as a number one.

He will certainly be out of the spotlight at Maritimo, but the club are set up for bigger things than a stay in the Portuguese second division and if Matos can help them get out of it, he’ll set himself on a good path.

Klopp certainly saw the talent in Matos, claiming that he was doing an ‘incredible’ job bridging the gap between academy and first team at Liverpool.

“We employed Vitor, not because the academy wasn’t working as well as we wished but because we needed a connecting point,” the former Liverpool manager told Sky Sports in December 2020.

“Pep [Lijnders] was doing that too but first-team coach is a big job; we needed someone in that development coach role who knows both sides and Vitor is doing an incredible job.”


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