Liverpool will see the true value of Roberto Firmino this season as he’s linked with a move away. Juventus reportedly want the Brazilian.
Roberto Firmino is officially in the final year of his Liverpool contract and that will bring speculation. After all, there haven’t been any reports that the Reds will offer him a new one. It really feels as though the no.9 departs for free next summer – as things stand, anyway.
Because TuttoJuve reported this week that Juventus are willing to offer some cash for Firmino. They’d put £20m on the table for a transfer this summer, giving Liverpool the chance to cash-in on their striker.
Now, Fabrizio Romano suggests there’s little in that and Liverpool don’t wish to sell. At the same time, Goal Brasil believe Firmino would entertain the idea if Juventus did make an offer.
But this is one situation where Liverpool won’t get the full value for Firmino from a sale. They’ll only get that if they hold onto him for one more season.
The value of Roberto Firmino
We all know who Firmino’s successor is – Liverpool paid £64m to Benfica to sign him this summer. But it’s difficult to put into words exactly what a change it will be for the Reds to move from Firmino to Darwin Nunez.
We tried to explain it here, though it’s impossible to entirely explain everything the Brazilian brings to Jurgen Klopp’s team. After all, there’s a reason why Klopp says you could write a book on Firmino and believes it’s ‘insane’ that he brings so much to the team.
Replacing such a key cog in the team is incredibly difficult, especially when the replacement is a completely different type of player. Liverpool will need to adapt to Nunez as Klopp tries to build a new playing style. There will be more focus on midfielders linking play with the attack, rather than Firmino dropping deep. The wingers won’t have the same runs through the middle, either, as Nunez looks to get in behind.
That’s something that Sadio Mané and Mohamed Salah thrived on for years. There’s a reason Mané reserved special praise for Firmino on his exit this summer.
“Wow, for sure, Bobby and Mo – what players!” he told Liverpoolfc.com. “I think there are no other secrets because playing alongside these great players, they make everything easier for me.
“I think I am just supporting this and especially Bobby, who always dropped and made space for me and Mo, I think it was just incredible.”
Thus teething problems are inevitable and that’s a worry as Liverpool still want to win trophies this season. Selling Firmino, then, should be out of the question. Having him there as a permanent option is worth far more than £20m as it means Klopp can always revert to his tried-and-true across the campaign.
If Nunez doesn’t quite click or a certain game requires the ‘old’ system, Klopp can call on Firmino. That could genuinely be the difference-maker this season as Liverpool try to clinch the Premier League and Champions League.
Selling Firmino for £20m the club doesn’t even need right now would absolutely be the wrong move.
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