In its own way, it was a peculiarly appropriate tribute. Invited to praise Roberto Firmino after statistically the most productive game of his Liverpool career yielded two goals and three assists, Jurgen Klopp instead started talking about a match in which he neither scored nor assisted.
And if citing his beloved Brazilian’s display in last week’s defeat to Manchester United suggested Klopp was showing his contrarian streak, Firmino has long made contributions his manager appreciates even if many another does not notice or value them.
Perhaps, too, it was fitting that an individual milestone was camouflaged. Firmino brought up a century of Liverpool goals but the most notable statistics concerned the team: their 9-0 demolition of Bournemouth was the joint biggest win in Premier League history.
Firmino has spent much of his Anfield career being overshadowed, willingly sacrificing himself so Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane could be more prolific. As Liverpool swept past 800 goals under Jurgen Klopp, they have got almost half. Of Firmino’s 100, none came for Brendan Rodgers, 100 for Klopp.
The Senegalese is gone now, but it is remarkable that three contemporaries are all centurions. As a trio, they stand out in Liverpool history: for instance, while Steven Gerrard played with Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler, he had only scored 14 goals before the latter’s move to Leeds. There wasn’t a trio of players with a ton of goals for Bob Paisley or Bill Shankly.
Liverpool have never had an era like the last few years and if Firmino, 31 in a few weeks, in the final year of his contract and having lost his status as an automatic choice, may be nearing an end, he has had a special place in Klopp’s heart and his tactics alike.
“We never doubt him,” said Virgil van Dijk. “He showed again why he is a world-class player.”
But a very different one. At times he has been the non-scoring non-striker. Liverpool’s greatest false nine has been a statistical curiosity. They posted 99 points in a season when he did not score a league goal at Anfield until the final home game. His brace against Bournemouth represented his first top-flight strikes at home since 2020. It highlights his bit-part role last season, amid injuries, but also his capacity to score important goals: he had struck away at Tottenham, Manchester United, Arsenal and Inter Milan in the meantime.
Scroll back seven years and his breakthrough display was at Stamford Bridge, his first goal at the Etihad Stadium and his Anfield account opened against Arsenal. Klopp took over a team 10th in the league and with Firmino looking a misfit, and he scored the goal that won the Club World Cup.
In effect, Firmino supplanted Daniel Sturridge, but he was the anti-Sturridge. Given everything else he does, it remains remarkable that he struck 27 times in his stunning 2017/18 campaign; he, Salah and Mane finished the campaign all in double figures in the Champions League. And yet there have been droughts: 12 games at the start, 15 early in 2021, vast spells of Anfield league matches.
While he became the 19th member of Liverpool’s hundred club, in one respect he only ranks 15th amongst them. His average of a goal every 3.31 appearances is better only than those of Ian St John, John Barnes and Gerrard. The Scot was a forward who ended up in midfield; neither of the Englishmen were ever a striker. Arguably Firmino is not, either, but there is a comparison with a man he is twinned with: Kevin Keegan, another talismanic scurrier, also has exactly 100 Liverpool goals, and from just eight fewer games, with 323. But 62 of Firmino’s outings were as a substitute, and none of Keegan’s.
Firmino rarely gives the impression he cares about his goal tally and Klopp can appear oblivious to it.
But there are times when Firmino gravitates towards the centre circle more than the six-yard box. The inverted forward line came courtesy of the man who inherited the No 9 shirt of Fowler, Fernando Torres and Ian Rush but seemed to want to be a defensive midfielder, such was his enthusiasm for regaining possession.
He did not always behave like a typical striker. Indeed, just two of his goals have been penalties. Those 98 in open play have been augmented by 70 assists, 21 of them for Salah and 17 for Mane, from a player who has rarely taken set-pieces. Factor them in and it becomes 170 direct goal contributions in 331 outings.
And if Firmino’s uniqueness may have been shown when Liverpool signed a long-term successor in Darwin Nunez, who is very different, his statistics illustrate the challenge. In his idiosyncratic way, while happily being outscored by Salah and Mane, Roberto Firmino has also won the numbers game.
