Roberto Firmino urged to “demand” more chances from his Liverpool teammates
Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino has been urged to “demand” more chances from his club team-mates by former Premier League striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.
Firmino has been key to Liverpool’s resurgence under Jurgen Klopp as they compete on both a domestic and European level.
The Firmino effect: Five things you need to know…
- Firmino joined Liverpool from Bundesliga side Hoffenheim in 2015 for £29 million.
- Since then, the Brazilian has 184 appearances for the Reds, scoring 63 goals.
- He is part of Liverpool’s attacking trio threat that includes Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.
- This season, Firmino has scored 11 Premier League goals, four short of last season’s total.
- He has only scored one goal in the last nine matches.
https://audioboom.com/posts/7205446-man-utd-need-to-sign-england-s-duel-master
Writing on BBC Sport, former Chelsea striker Hasselbaink discussed the vital role Firmino plays at the heart of Klopp’s side.
Taking note of his obvious and natural abilities, Hasselbaink believes Firmino needs to become more selfish in his role to ensure he carries on scoring the goals that could help fire Liverpool to both the Premier League title and Champions League glory.
Hasselbaink said: “I know what an important and unselfish role the Brazilian has in Jurgen Klopp’s side but his team needs to increase their all-round attacking threat and as part of that I would like to see him getting in the box more.
“I want to see Firmino demanding more chances from his team-mates, because at the moment he does not get enough.
“We know what a good finisher he is when he gets an opportunity in front of goal, and what I really like about him is that he is so calm in those situations.
“When the chance comes, he sees the picture so he is in the right place – and he can execute it too.
“The first bit is the easy part, but then you need composure to find the net. Not a lot of players have it, but Firmino does, and his goals could play a vital part in the title race.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa_EdMMm-Lc
Subscribe to Squawka’s Youtube channel here.
Firmino is more than just goals
The Brazilian continues to provide impressive performances week-in-week-out for Liverpool, with his goalscoring and creativity a vital cog in how the Reds conduct their footballing business.
Sometimes, it seems as though Firmino isn’t contributing as much as he has done in the past. However, his all round play, link-up and ability to find and create space for his teammates is not a series of qualities to be underestimated.
He isn’t far off last season’s Premier League goal total and is just one assist short of matching last season too.
There is no doubt that he will need to be at his best if Liverpool are to win silverware by the end of the campaign.
