Roberto Firmino has been a phenomenal player at Merseyside in the past 7 years, with the Reds’ manager, Jurgen Klopp, consistently placing the Brazilian at the very core of the Liverpool attack.
In fact, Firmino has chalked up 107 goals in 348 appearances for Liverpool. And when you factor in the additional 78 assists to Firmino’s name, these are not statistics that the club can afford to sleep on.
That said, Roberto Firmino is expected to be out of a contract with the Reds at the end of this season and given his post-World Cup absence due to a calf injury, there was some speculation about whether Liverpool would want to retain the 31-year-old’s services on the pitch.
In fact, Roberto Firmino has been running on fumes at Anfield, so to speak, only to be powered by Klopp’s publicized desire to keep him at the club.
Given that the Brazilian has been a performing member of a squad that has won 7 trophies in his tenure with the Reds, which include a Premier League title and a Champions League trophy, Klopp’s predilection toward Firmino does not come as a surprise.
However, amidst the recent slew of Saudi Arabian interest in world-class players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, it was rumoured that even Firmino was offered a contract that he declined because he was resolute in staying on at Anfield.
Now, recent developments with the Brazilian’s contract renewal were made public following Klopp’s response to a journalist, after the Reds’ victory over the Wolves, by the German reporter, Florian Plettenberg who tweeted that Liverpool has reportedly taken the decision to try and keep the 31-year-old at Anfield.
Per Plettenberg’s tweet, even though the contract has not been finalized, the terms of it would see Roberto Firmino in a Liverpool jersey until 2025, despite interest from Saudi Arabian clubs.
While this contract would certainly be beneficial for the Brazilian, he will still be threatened by Liverpool’s latest GBP 37 million signing Cody Gakpo, who has managed to draw substantial gravitas to his performance on the pitch having registered 3 goals in only 5 appearances in the Qatar World Cup for the Dutch side.
As such, Jurgen Klopp will also have to factor in Firmino’s involvement and role in the team amidst a potential rebuilding of the squad that is currently placed in the 9th position in a manner that enables him to utilise the immense talent Liverpool is sitting on, optimally.
Regardless, the Brazilian seems to be in high spirits according to his latest Instagram feed update where he seems to have donned the role of a pastor, preaching to his followers, specifically about Romans 10:14-15, urging his followers to obey god with a willing heart.
And the post has evinced a mixed set of hilarious reactions from the Twitterverse with some users tweeting about their confusion about whether Firmino has retired from the sport and has decided to spread God’s message to the masses.
However, whether or not he has the grace of God to bank upon, Roberto Firmino is a player that has been essential to Liverpool’s success in the past and his experience of playing at the highest level of European football is likely to secure him some brownie points with Klopp, especially against 23-year-old Cody Gakpo.