Nathan Brennan asks the question: could Roberto Firmino be Luis Suárez’ heir and inherit his Anfield crown? The stats would suggest so.
Thierry Henry once said about Roberto Firmino:“Is he Suárez ? At the moment he isn’t Suárez . But he might be in the future”.
If one of the greatest Premier League players of all time is rating you that highly in your first season, surely that means something? But perhaps if if the words of a legend like Henry don’t sway your your thinking then let the numbers speak for themselves.
In his first season as a Liverpool player Roberto Firmino only clicked into gear in late December and early January.
His season as a whole ended brilliantly as far as statistics are concerned making 49 appearances for the Reds in all competitions. In these 49 appearances, Firmino scored a total of 11 goals as well as hitting double figures in assists also with him picking up 11.
Now, let’s move on to the player I have dubbed him the “hear” to Luis Suaréz. In his first season, Suarez made 39 appearances for the Reds he bagging 11 goals in the league in 31 as well as 6 assists.
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However, Luis’ conversion rate in the domestic competitions outside the Premier League was very impressive, with him picking up 3 goals and 1 assist in just 4 F.A Cup games and also picking up 3 goals and 4 assists in just 4 League Cup games.
Overall Luis picked up 17 goals and 11 Assists in his first half a season as a Liverpool player.
Now we look at Luis Suaréz’s second season at Liverpool to set a bar for Firmino to see if he can reach the heights Suaréz did in his second season.
In his second season at Liverpool, Suarez made a total of 33 Premier League appearances, scoring an absolute stunning 23 goals and obtaining 11 assists. World class, mind blowing stats, right? Well, Luis overall that season made 44 Appearances getting 30 goals and 14 assists in his only his first full season in England, absolutely astonishing. This is what Firmino has to live up to in his second season at Liverpool if he is to take the title that Luis Suaréz had at Anfield.
There play as players is very similar, you get that samba feel about them at times and then you get that bulldog, Carlos Tevez-esque approach to some games. The ability to pull a mind blowing trick out of the bag and they could both nutmeg a mermaid. They are very similar.
The type of goals both players score is also very similar, they either create a chance by themselves, whether it be a worldie or a selection of skills to take out the entire defence or he could score tap-ins set up by other teammates, meaning he brings others into the game and improves the others around him whilst still playing at his best, something which Suaréz did better than anyone.
Luis Suaréz may arguably be the best player in the world right now and you might find it stupid to compare Roberto Firmino to the best player in the world, but give him the time Luis had and I guarantee it won’t be long before The Kop is signing Firmino’s name every match-day.
Featured Image – Liverpool ECHO