What did Firmino do in his golden years with Liverpool?
Roberto Firmino will play his last game for Liverpool on Saturday, but what memories will he leave behind at Anfield?
Saturday at Anfield will be the farewell day, as the journey of James Milner, who made his mark in great victories for Liverpool, ends, alongside Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who didn’t break records, but were certainly part of the Reds’ success.
And there’s Julian Ward, the sporting director who spent 11 years helping to establish the Reds as one of the dominant forces in Europe, and Ian Graham and David Woodvin, their terms all expire. everyone.
But the saddest moment will come, when the dancing-legged, grinning Brazilian simply says goodbye to a Liverpool legend, and this weekend will only confirm that fact.
It will be Roberto Firmino, the man of the day, during the Aston Villa match, when his name is underlined in the Liverpool squad for the last time, not everyone’s eyes will dry at Anfield.
Eight years of magic
It’s been an exciting journey for Firmino, who will leave Anfield when his contract expires at the end of the season. It’s been eight years of magic, goals, assists, trophies and great memories.
If he plays against Aston Villa on Saturday, he will have played 361 games for Liverpool, during which he scored 109 goals, provided 72 assists, and won six titles.
What a player, he helped win the Club World Cup in 2019, and he also participated in the return of the league title after 30 years.
He is the one who redefined the role of Liverpool’s No. 9 player. He gave interviews and barely spoke English, but his personality and way of playing endeared him to teammates and fans. He’s the one who made the kung fu ceremony.
Signed by Brendan Rodgers and becoming a favorite with Jurgen Klopp, the German won’t admit it publicly, but take a look at his face this weekend. He wanted Firmino to stay, no wonder.
Spent in its place 29 million pounds sterling
It is easy to forget now, with a quick look at the past, Firmino’s start in Liverpool was not in the best condition, so he was bought from Hoffenheim in the summer of 2015, and his signing was a source of contention between coach Rodgers and the club’s scouting team, so he was seen as a symbol of a failed club system.
After a difficult 2014-15 season, which ended with a 6-1 humiliation at Stoke City, Rodgers was criticized by a huge fan but still had one last chance to stay at Liverpool.
But Rodgers pressed hard, in order to include Firmino, despite the objection of the scouts team, along with Christian Benteke from Aston Villa, and in the end the club signed with the players, and paid 29 million pounds sterling, for the Brazilian, compared to 32.5, for the Belgian’s exit from Villa Park, and at that time it was said About the two deals, “they were a signature for the coach and another for the club.”
And later it turned out that the “club signature” was the best.
Boom under Klopp
The Brazilian started the 2015-16 season on the bench, appearing just four games before Rodgers was sacked at the start of October, when he played as a winger, or number 10, and participated in the humiliating defeat at Old Trafford, as a left-back.
But Klopp’s arrival changed everything. Firmino was injured in the German’s first game away at Tottenham, but two weeks later he started as a striker at Chelsea, playing a starring role in the 3-1 win over reigning champions Jose Mourinho at Stamford Bridge.
Klopp had been following Firmino before in Borussia Dortmund, and he thought he was a smart contract from Liverpool, and when the Brazilian scored his first goal with the Reds in a 4-1 victory over Manchester City led by Manuel Pellegrini at Al Ittihad, many began to agree with him.
He was by no means a classic number 9, but he was known for his ability to break down opponents’ defences, and for his distinctive technical touch.
The famous front triple
Every coach needs a distinctive front line that translates his philosophy, and Firmino’s first season at Liverpool was serious, as he scored 11 goals in 49 matches in all competitions, and when Klopp began to put the pieces together, his true Brazilian brilliance began.
First came Sadio Mane, from Southampton in the summer of 2016. The Senegal star immediately added pace, dynamism and goals, winning Liverpool’s Player of the Year award in his first season.
A year later, the Reds hit the jackpot again, when they paid around £37m, to sign Mohamed Salah from Roma. And that transition was special.
Together, the trio racked up plenty of trophies, chief among them the absent Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and Club World Cup.
Over time, the trio separated, and Mane left for Bayern Munich in the summer of 2022, after they scored 338 goals in five seasons together. An absolutely fantastic record, which is what makes the three Anfield legends.
“The best in the world is…”
Firmino did not appear in Liverpool’s victory over Leicester on Monday, but only returned to training after a muscle problem on Wednesday, but his name was echoing at the Wolves’ stadium, in the final minutes of the Reds’ comfortable 3-0 victory.
That chant, “Siiiii Senor” means that Firmino is “the best in the world”, will become one of the best and most famous in Liverpool’s history, it has been chanted by Reds fans for many years.
Firmino loved it, and he seemed moved by the reaction from the fans and his team-mates on the pitch, wait till you hear everyone, Anfield, cheering for him on Saturday.
The right time to leave
It was a long goodbye for Firmino, with news of his departure breaking at the start of March. Klopp admitted he was “surprised” by the decision, he had wanted and expected Firmino to stay for another year but the parting now made sense for all parties.
Firmino will turn 32 next October, but he will not be relied on as a regular starter much, but his influence on Liverpool seems to have diminished in recent seasons. He participated in only 17 matches in all competitions last and current season, and he missed the 2022 Carabao Cup final due to injury, and he was on the bench in the FA Cup and the Champions League.
Certainly, he will be influential in Liverpool’s offensive line, and he should not be judged by his numbers in previous seasons, but it seems that he has no place in a new era, Anfield.
He was one of a kind, one of Liverpool’s greatest players of the modern era, and he will be sorely missed.
