Liverpool attacker Roberto Firmino is not certain to remain at the club this summer, according to a report by ESPN.
Five players are set to enter the final six months of their Anfield contracts. Alongside the Brazilian, Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, James Milner and Adrian will all be out of a deal at the end of the season.
ESPN report the 31-year-old is the Reds player most likely to be offered a new contract.
However, they claim it is by no means certain that the forward will be retained by the club.
Jurgen Klopp has already replaced Firmino in the long-term with the arrival of Darwin Nunez, so an extension by the Merseyside outfit is not guaranteed.
Firmino could leave
Having arrived from Hoffenheim in 2015 in a deal worth £29m, the attacker has gone on to achieve an illustrious career at Anfield.
Becoming a staple in Klopp’s front-line, Firmino has amassed 348 appearances for the Reds. During this seven-year tenure, he has bagged 107 goals and 78 assists – adding far more on the pitch than statistics necessarily suggest.
However, at times last season, the Brazilian looked a little fatigued and off the pace. Consequently, he lost his starting spot in Liverpool’s XI.
Despite this, Firmino has been exceptional again this term. In 13 Premier League matches, he has produced seven goals and three assists. Even in the Champions League, he has scored twice and assisted once in six fixtures thus far.
As a result, the 31-year-old has demonstrated he is more than worth an extension with the club.
He has proven himself to be very important this season, for which assistant manager Pep Lijnders has claimed he is a ‘world-class’ player.
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
