Jason Harris evaluates Roberto Firmino’s time at Liverpool Football Club so far and why this season could be where the Brazilian truly flourishes.
When finding your way in the music industry, an up and coming band or solo act will often have to do the hard yards of playing small pub shows and supporting the main act on their way to the top.
It is not what you would describe as overly pleasurable work, quite often to the contrary, however, the determination and the blood sweat and tears spilt along the way makes it worth it in the end.
While Roberto Firmino clearly had talent after Brendan Rodgers signed him from Hoffenheim for £29 million in June of 2015, for many fans of the Premier League the Brazilian came to the country as an unknown quantity and naturally took time to find his feet.
In many ways Firmino was the back up man to his fellow Brazilian Philippe Coutinho who had become the Reds’ most relied upon attacking weapon after the sale of Luis Suarez the summer before.
When Jürgen Klopp arrived at the club in October 2015, one of his first jobs was to find a way to incorporate Firmino into a more prominent role, as he knew him well from the Bundesliga. One of the strengths that Klopp particularly liked of Firmino was his ability to play a true team role and continually track back to win possession of the ball.
He played a key role in the Europa League run of that season and with confidence ever building, became the leader of the line ahead of the oft-injured Daniel Sturridge.
The trio of Coutinho, Firmino and Sadio Mané played a key role in the success of the side last season, with their telepathic ability to know where the other player was on the pitch.
For his part, Firmino scored eleven goals in the league including some crackers against Crystal Palace and Stoke and important strikes against Arsenal and West Brom in the run-in to secure a Champions League spot. He also produced seven assists showing that he has an all round game.
With the discussion over the future of Coutinho now rampant, Firmino can now see an opportunity to a real leader of the attack as he showed when he stepped up to take the penalty against Watford. With Mané still finding his way back to peak form after his serious injury last year, Firmino’s role as a senior statesman becomes ever more important this season.
Like every player in the squad, the next challenge is to improve their output from the following season and step up to the mark once again.
Firmino strikes you as a person that is not afraid of the moment and it is now Bobby’s time to shine and be the prime time act.
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