Q&AJoe Gomez interview: Andy Robertson love and Liverpool v Fulham preview

Robertson announced on Thursday that he will be leaving the Reds upon the conclusion of the 2025-26 season, when his contract expires.

Gomez will have witnessed all of the Scot's incredible nine-year journey at the club and has forged an extremely tight relationship with him in that time.

Ahead of the Premier League meeting with Fulham on Saturday, Liverpoolfc.com sat down with the No.2 at the AXA Training Centre – read on for the interview.

We got the news this week that Andy Robertson will be departing in the summer. You've obviously been here for his whole nine years at the club, you've shared some of the best things and best experiences that football can offer. Tell us just how much he's contributed to this club...

It's hard to put into words. We come from different backgrounds but we've got a lot of similarities in our journeys, I think – coming from Championship sides and probably being underdogs in some ways. Robbo for me has been massive, more than just a teammate, like a friend. I've shared so many memories of our kids going to the same schools and creating bonds there. Obviously I've known for a while but similar to everyone, our whole fan base, it hit hard when that comes out and it's confirmed.

I just want him to get all the plaudits he deserves – not just [for] the player he's been but I think [for] the human he's been over the last nine years consistently. The presence he's been for all of us – in good times, in tough times – just what a person. I'm going to miss him a lot because he's a big part of my life. I spend a lot of time with him. I'll miss the little things, the journeys in together, the discussions after good games, after bad games. He's one of a kind and I hope he really gets celebrated because he is a legend in more ways than one. I'll miss him but it's time to celebrate him as well.

Obviously it was a tough night for the team at Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday but how do you assess that defeat a few days on?

Obviously it's not exactly how we would have wanted it to go. It was obviously a bit of a different system. I think everyone is aware and they've proven their quality over the last couple of seasons. They're clearly one of the best teams in world football at the minute. But we go there and we know our capabilities. At the end of the day, we're still Liverpool Football Club and we want to come away with a result, which we didn't really manage to get. It's all still to play for back at Anfield and we know how games can go when we're back at home. I think it's just about belief, firstly, from us as players, the coaches and the supporters. It's going to take a special night but we've had special nights before.

In terms of yourself, you're obviously one of the most experienced heads in this dressing room, you've seen and done it all in 11 years with Liverpool. So how do you and those more experienced players set the tone for these next few weeks, which could be so pivotal in the season?

I think, first of all, we're trying to lead by example in our actions and how we try to apply ourselves. It's obviously trying to be vocalised to the boys, like, 'We've done this before, we're LFC and we have to play that out, we have to show that in how we put up a fight and how we try to apply ourselves.' Obviously we've got so much quality in our squad and that's been added to this year, and then there's still a lot of morals and principles that we have to try to carry ourselves and pass on. Like you say, it's about more than just Virgil [van Dijk], Robbo, as captain and vice-captain, it is about all of us that have been there. I feel we will try our best to do that and hopefully the boys feel it.

I suppose bringing back that confidence is one of the hardest things to work on. Because you guys can do everything on the training pitch in terms of tactics, but the mental side of things is just as important but probably harder to work on...

I think one of our disappointments this year is probably our resilience in dealing with those setbacks. I think in games obviously we've conceded a lot of late goals and our reactions to the setbacks within games – whether that be conceding late or not scoring chances and so on and so forth – has probably been one of our downfalls this year. But at the end of the day, it's never too late to change and we have to draw a line in the sand somewhere and try to move forward. I think that's all we can try to get across to one another and that's one thing the gaffer's got across to us is a lot of it is about mentality. Obviously that word has been used a lot here in the last decade and we have to try to keep emphasising it.

It's Fulham this weekend in the Premier League and the game at their place is one of those games where you think you've won it, only for them to go and equalise late on. You're presumably at that stage of the season where every match now you've got to treat like it's a final...

The last time we played them was an example of a real setback. Obviously we're competing on a front in Europe and domestically, it takes a toll and they're probably coming in in a different physical condition to us. But we have to take that challenge head on and relish that adversity sort of thing. We know it's going to be a tough game but we know how important these last few games in the Premier League are for us to finish and set up next season. So, every game has to be treated like a final and that's just the expectation of this club and that's what the norm is. We know that and we have to do our best and know that we're competing against a top team, a good side. They showed us in the away leg that they're going to compete and it's not going to be an easy game.