Liverpool are currently in a delightful dilemma that sees them torn between who to field up at the top of their attack. Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota are currently at the forefront of a lot of debate as the Reds move forward in their holding Premier League campaign.
The Portuguese attacker has proven to be a superb signing already after scoring six goals in four appearances. Jota bagged his first hat-trick for the Reds against Atalanta in the week and has matched the record of Anfield legend Luis Garcia, scoring a goal in his first three Anfield appearances.
However, despite his impressive start, Chris Kirkland believes that Firmino is still the man for the job.
Firmino is still the man for Klopp
Speaking to Football FanCast, the former Liverpool goalkeeper said that he believes “Jurgen backs him [Firmino] to the hill”. Indeed, despite his irregular run of goalscoring performances and struggle to find the net, the Brazilian has established himself as an integral part of this title-winning team.
“As long as the team’s winning, the problems will become if they start drawing games or losing games and your striker’s not scoring goals,” Kirkland continued. “That’s when he’ll look at it. But while the team’s winning and while they’re successful like they are, no he won’t be worried about it at all.”
The beauty of Liverpool’s front three is that Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah’s clinical eye for a goal allows Firmino to free roam and drop deep to create chances. Adopting the lesser seen ‘false nine’ role, the Reds boast a unique but extremely effective attack.
With Jota now also in the ranks, a new Klopp formation could be unearthed. The 23-year-old has shown his confidence on both wings and up front as a No.9. Both his and Salah’s versatility could make for a very exciting relationship on the pitch, without the need to cast aside Firmino.
“We know what Firmino does for the team and eventually he’ll start banging the goals in, there’s no doubt about it at all,” said Kirkland. The £64.8million-rated striker has one goal and two assists in the Premier League so far this season, but those stats are just a slice of the bigger Firmino picture.
Under a new and exciting attacking formation, the 29-year-old will undoubtedly flourish and prove a lot of recent doubters wrong.
In other news, Liverpool given boost ahead of potential Ozan Kabak signing…
