Jurgen Klopp is quick to praise all of the players in their squad, and the latest player to enjoy his moment in the spotlight is Roberto Firmino. Following his return to the scoresheet at the weekend vs Watford, Klopp praised the impact of Firmino beyond his goalscoring, as per the Liverpool Echo.
He said: “He is doing the job. That makes him so unbelievably valuable for us. I’m really happy with him”.
Klopp added: “It’s because of the small things he is doing, he is working hard, he is here, he is there, he has five goals now and he opens 5,000 gaps for everybody. It’s about how you see it”.
Clearly, Klopp views Firmino as one of his most important and most useful players, and he’s absolutely right.
Whilst the Brazilian may frustrate some fans with his relative lack of goals, in contrast to his rivals, what the attacker lacks in that regard he more than makes up in other ways. He’s simply fantastic with the ball at his feet, and his excellent range of passing, dribbling and his ruthless energy make him arguably the complete player.
Regardless of where he’s playing, he’s able to get involved with every aspect of play, and that’s the sign of a top player. When playing as a forward, he scores enough goals – he bagged 15 in the league last year – whilst he also effortlessly links up with the players around him. Indeed, Mohamed Salah wouldn’t have enjoyed such a good year last term without Firmino alongside him, that’s for sure.
When he’s playing as more of a number 10, though, that allows him to make use of his other qualities, namely his work rate and his fantastic range of passing. Whilst he may not score as often as he’d like in that role, his involvement in goals arguably gets even higher, and that’s a testament to his quality.
For Klopp, it clearly doesn’t matter where Firmino plays, as long as he’s on the field. He’s absolutely right, as Firmino is undeniably one of Liverpool’s best.
Thoughts?
