Written by James Cranford – @jamescranford89
That’s it, folks! The (not very long) wait for Premier League football is over! Liverpool travel to newly-promoted Fulham for Saturday’s early kick off and will be hoping to start their season with a bang. The Reds go into the campaign as Community Shield winners for the first time since 2006.
Kopites around the world were probably slightly disappointed to see Darwin Núñez out of the starting line-up last week, with Roberto Firmino starting in the centre of the front three. The 30-year-old put in a good performance, showing that he is not ready to give up a starting berth to fellow South American Núñez without a fight. Bobby is into the last year of his contract, with many observers wondering if this season could prove to be his swansong.
On the latest episode of our Journo Insight Show, we asked Goal’s Neil Jones for his thoughts on Firmino’s contract situation.
Neil said:
“I nearly fell over because Roberto Firmino was in the mix zone speaking! After the Community Shield he said, ‘I love the club, I love the city, I love the team, of course I want to stay’. I’m quite pleased that it has been quite comprehensively nipped in the bud – the Juventus stuff – both by Jürgen and Firmino. I asked Jürgen myself, he said he’s the heart and soul of the team, definitely part of the squad this season. After that, we’ll see. It’s another tough one because what do you give Roberto Firmino? I could see a situation where he left on a free and got the great send off, the one that he deserves as a Liverpool legend. I could also see a situation where Liverpool say, ‘Well, one more year?’ He’s not as old as James Milner, but that sort of situation. I think there might be more tears around his departure than probably anyone that leaves Liverpool at this stage. I wonder if Liverpool might just look to put that off and say, ‘Well, if he’s our fifth choice forward then we’re in good shape, aren’t we?’”
Redmen Reacts
We certainly are in good shape if Bobby is Liverpool’s fifth choice attacking option this season. The Brazilian has been integral to the Reds elevation from also rans to all-conquering under Jürgen Klopp and he is clearly loved by his manager, teammates and fans. Despite having outlasted three Prime Ministers, Firmino is still only 30 years old, so may not quite be ready for 12-month contract extensions in a similar vein to James Milner. As usual with these things, Klopp and his ‘brains trust’ will likely already know what they want to do. If they believe Bobby’s time at the top is coming to an end, then as Neil says, he will rightfully receive the sendoff a Liverpool legend deserves. Much depends on the progress of Fabio Carvalho and Harvey Elliott. If the pair are seen firmly as midfielders, then Anfield’s white-toothed wonder could find his stay extended by at least another season.
