Liverpool F.c.

[StevieH]

Be honest Liverpool fans, how many of you had actually heard of him or seen him play, I had no idea who he is or anything about him before there was press talk united was in for him.

hadn't heard of him at all until last week really nev, though think his name rang a distant bell about players who might soon break into the brazil squad etc. had seen absolutely nothing of him play until lads started posting youtube compilations a couple of days ago. but he's now my new favourite player and is obviously going to lead us to the league title.

i love a good out of the blue signing where you actually know nothing about the lad and there's been no links or leaks in the press. really hard to do in this day and age i think.

[Devil]

Be honest Liverpool fans, how many of you had actually heard of him or seen him play, I had no idea who he is or anything about him before there was press talk united was in for him.

Well I watched some of them Youtube videos on him, a couple were made by certain fans that said Welcome To Man Utd

[BangrakBob]

Be honest Liverpool fans, how many of you had actually heard of him or seen him play, I had no idea who he is or anything about him before there was press talk united was in for him.

"Wouldn't know him if he stood up in me soup" Brian Potter

[BangrakBob]

I like these facts.

Liverpool's latest signing also boasts a clean injury record, having featured in 33 of Hoffenheim's 34 league fixtures each season for the last three years.

Combining his own strike tally with his assists, Firmino has been involved in 45 goals in his last 66 outings in the German top flight.

yeah his numbers are really impressive aren't they? particularly for a middling team like hoffenheim.

i love a good out of the blue signing.

The decisiveness is also refreshing...

[longstebe]

Be honest Liverpool fans, how many of you had actually heard of him or seen him play, I had no idea who he is or anything about him before there was press talk united was in for him.

Why wouldn't we be honest. Does it really matter.

[StevieH]

I like these facts.

Liverpool's latest signing also boasts a clean injury record, having featured in 33 of Hoffenheim's 34 league fixtures each season for the last three years.

Combining his own strike tally with his assists, Firmino has been involved in 45 goals in his last 66 outings in the German top flight.

yeah his numbers are really impressive aren't they? particularly for a middling team like hoffenheim.

i love a good out of the blue signing.

The decisiveness is also refreshing...

aye. which makes you think that ian ayre's involvement must have been minimal.

[longstebe]

We're not Ayre bashing again are we. Whoever has done this deal deserves some credit along with FSG stumping up the cash.

[StevieH]

We're not Ayre bashing again are we. Whoever has done this deal deserves some credit along with FSG stumping up the cash.

ayrebashing is a permanent pastime mate. man's a whopper.

but yes, i've got enough moans about FSG so well done whoever was involved in getting this one in under the radar and without leaking all sorts of guff to the echo.

[BangrakBob]

That tackling stat....the boy tracks back

[StevieH]

yeah guy says the same in this article. seems to work his behind off does the boy firmino:

http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/jun/24/roberto-firmino-liverpool-thiever-of-balls?CMP=twt_gu

[BangrakBob]

Does anyone know if the coaching team has been finalised? Would like to know if there's going to be someone there that knows how to set up a defense.

[Devil]

Interesting article from The Guardian about the lad.

Link http://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2015/jun/24/roberto-firmino-liverpool-thiever-of-balls?CMP=share_btn_tw

Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino: a thiever of balls who never stops running

Marcus Christenson

The 23-year-old Brazilian arrives with a hefty price tag but his Bundesliga record is excellent and his workrate and application reminiscent of Luis Suárez

In December 2010 the Hoffenheim sporting director, Ernst Tanner, travelled to the east coast of Brazil to check out a player at the second division side Figueirense. The reports had been promising but Tanner did not know what to expect as he turned up for training to watch the young Roberto Firmino Barbosa de Oliveira.

Afterwards, Tanner was not much the wiser. “It was strange because during some exercises he would just, without any apparent reason, just fold … but instead of making a big meal out of it and getting angry, he listened carefully to his coach and learned from what he had done wrong. That impressed me.”

It is perhaps not the most glowing reference ever heard from a scouting mission but Tanner convinced Hoffenheim that the 19-year-old, whose move to Liverpool was announced on Wednesday, was worth a gamble. In January 2011 the Bundesliga club signed the player for €4m without much fanfare. At the low-key unveiling Tanner explained the club’s plans for the unknown Brazilian.

“We are delighted to have been able to strengthen our squad with a top talent from Brazil, in which several international clubs were interested,” he said. “We will give him enough time to settle in here at our club. He has already shown his qualities with eight goals in 36 games and was recently voted the best player in the Brazilian second division.”

In hindsight, Firmino could hardly have chosen a better club to start his European adventure. Hoffenheim is a tiny town south of Frankfurt with only around 3,000 inhabitants. The young Brazilian was allowed to settle without the pressure of being at a big club, or even in a big city.

Hoffenheim are only in the Bundesliga because of Dietmar Hopp’s huge financial support but they have also been extremely successful with their South American imports. In the month Firmino arrived at Hoffenheim, the club sold Luiz Gustavo to Bayern Munich for €17m. He had arrived from Corinthians Alagoano in 2008 for an even smaller fee than Firmino did three years later.

Firmino, in fact, was looking forward to moving to Europe so much that he got himself a tattoo in German before he boarded the flight. There was only one slight problem: he had used an internet translation tool, which did not use the umlaut on the ö in the phrase: “Familie unaufhorlich Liebe”, which roughly translates as “unremitting love for the family”.

Undeterred, the Brazilian made his Bundesliga debut a month after arriving in Germany and played in 11 league games that season, mainly as a substitute, scoring three goals; and this is the thing about Firmino, he is not an out-and-out goalscorer. He is a forward who averages roughly a goal every three games, and he has done that throughout his career.

What he does provide though, is an unrelenting work ethic. In that respect, he is similar to Luis Suárez and Alexis Sánchez. He will harry and press the opponents until he drops. In one match report in Germany he was described as the “clever, first stealer of balls in Hoffenheim’s pressing system”.

Holger Stanislawski, his first manager at Hoffenheim, immediately described him as being “unbelievably good tactically”, which will be music to Brendan Rodgers’ ears after a season of having to teach Mario Balotelli, among other things, how to defend at corners.

In fact he has been showered with praise for most of his time in Germany, the papers describing him as one of few players “who stay focused for the entire 90 minutes” and a “master of moving around without anyone noticing him, to provide goals or score them himself”.

There have been some disciplinary issues and he was once suspended briefly by Hoffenheim for turning up late for training but that was early on in his career and he has not done it since.

The 23-year-old was born in Maceió – as was Pepe and Mario Zagallo – which is one of Brazil’s most dangerous cities. His father sold water bottles to commuters waiting in the queues in and out of the city and he had to move to Figueirense on his own when he was 16. “It was not an easy time,” he has said, “I was completely on my own”. But that experience will have prepared him for moving to Germany, and now to England.

The 2013-14 season was arguably Firmino’s best to date with the manager Markus Gisdol getting the best out of him. Gisdol not only made him a better attacking player but also instilled the workrate ethic that was surely a big reason for Liverpool paying as much as £29m for him.

That season he scored 16 goals in 33 Bundesliga games, finishing third behind Marco Reus (30) and Robert Lewandowski (31) in the goalscoring charts. He also provided 12 assists that season and is, in fact, the player who has created most chances in the Bundesliga (138) over the past two seasons. Firmino also had the joint-third most assists last season (10) with Thomas Müller. Not bad for someone playing for a mid-table club.

Currently with Brazil at the Copa América, Firmino has coped well with the pressure of leading the line now that Neymar is suspended and he has already scored four goals in nine appearances for the national team. Carlos Dunga’s side play Paraguay in the quarter-finals on Saturday.

Behind the scenes, he is a bubbly, fun character but in front of the cameras he comes across as incredibly shy. On Tuesday, at a Copa press conference before his moved was confirmed, he managed to answer 18 questions without saying anything of note. It got to a point where the Brazilian journalists could only smile.

Most importantly for Liverpool, though, is that they seem to have learned from last summer’s travails in the transfer market. Then a deal for Loïc Rémy collapsed in late July and the club were forced into what can only be described as a panic buy with Balotelli in August. This time they have already signed James Milner, Adam Bogdan, Danny Ings and now Firmino.

The fee is eye-watering considering it is almost as much as Chelsea paid for Diego Costa and more (with add-ons) than Arsenal paid for Sánchez. But there is no doubt that he is an extremely talented young player who is still improving. There will be few defences in the Premier League looking forward to an afternoon battling Philippe Coutinho, Firmino and Daniel Sturridge – if fit.

And while £29m does seem a lot, if Raheem Sterling joins Manchester City for a fee of around £45-50m then Liverpool will have got a more consistent performer and made a hefty profit in the process. They’ll settle for that, and if Sterling stays, then opposing defences will be in even more trouble next season.

[Chicog]

That tackling stat....the boy tracks back

CINQxMMWwAExtW6.jpg-large.jpeg

Three times a game?

[StevieH]

Does anyone know if the coaching team has been finalised? Would like to know if there's going to be someone there that knows how to set up a defense.

that lad lijnders has been promoted up from the youth setup to the first team, as a coach i think. but far as i know there's been no assistant manager appointed yet and not a lot else. i'm still hoping they might go get sami hyypia in as a specialist defensive coach.

[BangrakBob]

That tackling stat....the boy tracks back

CINQxMMWwAExtW6.jpg-large.jpeg

Three times a game?

3 tackles is not amazing but the stat tells you he tracks back a la Alexis Sanchez which to me is a fantastic, desired quality

[jellydog]

Wind ups a side, sounds a lot of money for a one in four front man but tbh i aint seen him play have you ?

rijit

I've only seen him play a couple of times but not in a strikers position. More of a Coutinho role.

Sounds like Jovetic. Hope you have better luck than City did.

[rijit]

Wind ups a side, sounds a lot of money for a one in four front man but tbh i aint seen him play have you ?

rijit

I've only seen him play a couple of times but not in a strikers position. More of a Coutinho role.

Sounds like Jovetic. Hope you have better luck than City did.

harsh mate, Jovetic i always thought was ok, just never really got a chance, or when he did was unlucky with injuries.

[jellydog]

Wind ups a side, sounds a lot of money for a one in four front man but tbh i aint seen him play have you ?

rijit

I've only seen him play a couple of times but not in a strikers position. More of a Coutinho role.

Sounds like Jovetic. Hope you have better luck than City did.

harsh mate, Jovetic i always thought was ok, just never really got a chance, or when he did was unlucky with injuries.

Good kid Jovetic and I like his attitude. Talented. But inconsistent, plays too many loose passes, frequently dispossessed, too many weak "Gosh I hope this goes in" shots on goal. Injuries surely hurt him but he didn't show me enough when he was healthy. I can't see him as more than a late game attacking option for most top flight EPL clubs. Needs a bit more discipline to his game.

[Chicog]

That tackling stat....the boy tracks back

CINQxMMWwAExtW6.jpg-large.jpeg

Three times a game?

3 tackles is not amazing but the stat tells you he tracks back a la Alexis Sanchez which to me is a fantastic, desired quality

Never hurts, that's for sure.

[longstebe]

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/liverpool-fc-comment-how-ian-9517894#ICID=sharebar_twitter

[fonsboy]

I like these facts.

Liverpool's latest signing also boasts a clean injury record, having featured in 33 of Hoffenheim's 34 league fixtures each season for the last three years.

Combining his own strike tally with his assists, Firmino has been involved in 45 goals in his last 66 outings in the German top flight.

yeah his numbers are really impressive aren't they? particularly for a middling team like hoffenheim.

i love a good out of the blue signing.

The decisiveness is also refreshing...

aye. which makes you think that ian ayre's involvement must have been minimal.

You really are an a-ole . I suppose if the clueless clown Rodgers had been involved it would have been great . My only worry with the Firmino signing is Rodgers will f... it up by playing him out of position . Without Rodgers involvement , this window has been great , 5 signings even before the window is officially open . He would still be powdering his nose , looking in the mirror saying how lovely I am .

[longstebe]

Unless you're connected directly to the club then none of us really know who's signing this was. The only thing that is certain was Ayre went out to finalise the deal and he got it done.

[fonsboy]

Unless you're connected directly to the club then none of us really know who's signing this was. The only thing that is certain was Ayre went out to finalise the deal and he got it done.

Well aware , but why do you have to run the guy down after he completed a great deal . apparently he is still there so may be more quality signings to come .

[longstebe]

Unless you're connected directly to the club then none of us really know who's signing this was. The only thing that is certain was Ayre went out to finalise the deal and he got it done.

Well aware , but why do you have to run the guy down after he completed a great deal . apparently he is still there so may be more quality signings to come .

????

Where have I "run the guy down"?

[fonsboy]

Just reading that Rodgers is only due back off holiday 6th July . That could mean he has had nothing to do with our recent signings . This got me to thinking Fsg cannot sack a manager without having to payup his contract . This for me is the only reason they did not sack him after the humiliating defeat at Stoke . So what can they do , tell him not to speak to media , not involve him in the running of the club at all so he does the honourable thing & resigns his post without compensation . Now he has gone what do they do ; do we really need a manager on a huge salary that you cannot sack . Or do we get a DOF & top quality coaches to work with the team on the training ground . Would not surprise me at all if this is the way John Henry is thinking .

[carmine]

Just reading that Rodgers is only due back off holiday 6th July . That could mean he has had nothing to do with our recent signings . This got me to thinking Fsg cannot sack a manager without having to payup his contract . This for me is the only reason they did not sack him after the humiliating defeat at Stoke . So what can they do , tell him not to speak to media , not involve him in the running of the club at all so he does the honourable thing & resigns his post without compensation . Now he has gone what do they do ; do we really need a manager on a huge salary that you cannot sack . Or do we get a DOF & top quality coaches to work with the team on the training ground . Would not surprise me at all if this is the way John Henry is thinking .

Did you ever stop to think that the reason he's still incumbent is they couldn't replace him with a suitable candidate!! Its a massive over simplification to suggest a sacking because of a embarrassing defeat.

[longstebe]

Where did you read that he's only due back on the 6th. Just because he's on holiday doesn't mean had nothing to do with the signings, they could have been identified last season.

[carmine]

Unless you're connected directly to the club then none of us really know who's signing this was. The only thing that is certain was Ayre went out to finalise the deal and he got it done.

Well aware , but why do you have to run the guy down after he completed a great deal . apparently he is still there so may be more quality signings to come .

Is it a great deal already? Doesn't that remain to be seen?

[longstebe]

Unless you're connected directly to the club then none of us really know who's signing this was. The only thing that is certain was Ayre went out to finalise the deal and he got it done.

Well aware , but why do you have to run the guy down after he completed a great deal . apparently he is still there so may be more quality signings to come .

Is it a great deal already? Doesn't that remain to be seen?

Nah, he's Brazilian with a "O" on the end of his name, bound to be class.

[fonsboy]

Just reading that Rodgers is only due back off holiday 6th July . That could mean he has had nothing to do with our recent signings . This got me to thinking Fsg cannot sack a manager without having to payup his contract . This for me is the only reason they did not sack him after the humiliating defeat at Stoke . So what can they do , tell him not to speak to media , not involve him in the running of the club at all so he does the honourable thing & resigns his post without compensation . Now he has gone what do they do ; do we really need a manager on a huge salary that you cannot sack . Or do we get a DOF & top quality coaches to work with the team on the training ground . Would not surprise me at all if this is the way John Henry is thinking .

Did you ever stop to think that the reason he's still incumbent is they couldn't replace him with a suitable candidate!! Its a massive over simplification to suggest a sacking because of a embarrassing defeat.

Carmine as usual you are not reading what I am saying , they do not want a suitable candidate ie they do not want another big name manager on a huge salary they now want a director of football , Does a club really need a manager . The business so far this transfer window has probably been the smoothest it has ever been without the involvement of the manager . Everyone gets carried away by what an important person the manager is , SAF compounded this , but when you look at some of the deadbeats that have become multi millionaires jumping from club to club Sam Allardyce is a good example you do not need them . For me a DOF , but more importantly quality coaches is the way to go .