Roberto Firmino has certainly lived up to his lofty price tag after Brendan Rodgers spent a whopping £21.3 million to bring the Brazilian to Anfield from the Bundesliga. The former Hoffenheim man finished last season as Liverpool’s highest scorer as he showed his adaptability at playing anywhere across the front line.
This season saw him play as the main man up front to begin with. And Klopp’s tactics paid rich dividends as the Brazilian notched up 5 goals and 3 assists to begin the season. However, he has failed to make any decisive impact in the last six games, especially since being pulled back from the role of the sole striker due to Phillippe Coutinho's injury.
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Speaking to the Liverpool website, Firmino spoke about his desire to play as a striker but has no qualms when called upon to play in a different role for the sake of his team.
“At the moment, I am playing up front but I can play anywhere the manager asks me to. My preference is to be inside the area, near where the goals are scored – that’s my preference!” Firmino told the Liverpool website.
“But my main aim is to be helpful to the team in achieving what we need to achieve,” he added.
With Divock Origi scoring six in his last seven appearances, Firmino will find it hard to convince the gaffer to give him a look in at the same spot. However, Firmino, whilst scoring a lot less when playing in a wider role, reiterated that he would always be putting his team first and do whatever is asked of him to get a win.
“If it depended on me, I would play in every corner of the ground because that’s the type of player I am! But obviously it alters depending on the needs of the team,’ Firmino continued.
“When I was younger I played as a right-back. I also played as a central defender but I realised that I could dominate the ball quite calmly so I started playing further forward in front of the back four.
“After a while, I thought that I was quite offensive so when I was 17 or 18, I started playing a more forward-thinking midfielder. That’s how I eventually ended up playing in the areas like I am today.”
Following a fiery start to the season, Liverpool have stumbled in recent times and allowed Chelsea open up a six-point lead at the top of the table. After securing all three points, Liverpool will now look to keep pace with the Blues at the top when they entertain Stoke City on Boxing Day.
