There’s no question as to who’s Liverpool’s most in-form player right now.
Brazilian summer signing Roberto Firmino has notched four goals in three matches, including braces against Arsenal and Norwich at the weekend.
He failed to find the back of the net versus Manchester United in between but was a genuine menace, and was unlucky not to bag from close-range at the death.
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Firmino arrived at Liverpool having played as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga side Hoffenheim, but interestingly, he’d played as a striker for the Brazilian national team, proving he’s adept in both positions.
“After Manchester United, everybody asked me: ‘What about Firmino, you need a real target striker?’ But he scored two against Arsenal and he scored two here,” Klopp said after the 5-4 victory at Carrow Road – reported in the Guardian.
“I think it’s a wide spectrum. Roberto is a striker. He’s a very offensive player. A lot of strikers are 1.60 metres or 1.70 metres-something. Leo Messi what is he? Let’s discuss about this. Firmino can play and score goals and he is for us a good option to play with. He is flexible and in brilliant shape. Having the option with Christian, that’s good. We have too many games where I can say: ‘This or this is No1’. We have always to make decisions.”
Instead of starting out and out centre-forward Christian Benteke in recent Premier League matches, Klopp’s gone for Firmino as a false-9, and the 24-year-old is proving he’s up to the job.
He doesn’t seem a naturally brilliant finisher, but we can’t argue with two braces in three games, especially as he’s creating chances for those around him as well.
Currently, he surely must be used as the starting centre-forward in our upcoming Premier League fixtures, with Daniel Sturridge not yet an option.