When Liverpool splashed £29 million on Hoffenheim forward Roberto Firmino, there was a sense of excitement among the Anfield faithful.
The Brazilian has been a player that many have spoken about in recent years after shining for both club and country. Having a very good record in both the goals and assists column, it seemed a match made in heaven for the Reds.
After coming off a disappointing 2014-15 season, Liverpool needed that extra x-factor to spur them on. There was a real lack of creativity and goals from the Reds in that season, but the addition of Firmino was a clear statement of intent to push up the tally of 52 Premier League goals.
There is no point denying that Firmino has taken some time to kick-start his Liverpool career. It is never easy moving clubs, especially when it involves moving into a new league. There is the language barrier and a completely different style of football to adapt to.
Being quite a technical player, most supporters knew it would take some time to adjust to the physicality of the Premier League. One must remember that the Premier League is at a completely different pace. Not only is there a higher number of high-quality players spread around from team to team, there is also the non-stop, frantic tempo.
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What did not help was being played out of position by Brendan Rodgers when he was still in charge. When entering a new environment, you want to be as comfortable as possible and arguing Rodgers did not provide that is a fair assessment.
Firmino is naturally a central-attacking player. We saw him played out wide consistently during the short time Rodgers spent with him this season. It clearly affected his ability to play with confidence and give the opposition all sorts of problems like he did back in the Bundesliga.
As well as being played out of position, Firmino struggled early on with the pace, physicality and the overall intensity of the Premier League. Many fans simply thought he looked out of his depth, but as always, certain individuals must be afforded some time.
Look no further than Arsenal playmaker Mesut Ozil. Many wrote him off during his early days at the Emirates, suggesting he simply is not cut out to be a top Premier League player. But here we are, approximately three years after Arsenal signed him and he is running riot with goals and assists. If Arsenal are to win the league, he would be the difference.
Perhaps in years to come, we may be saying the same about Firmino.
Now that Liverpool supporters have been able to watch him grow and develop over the short time he has been at Anfield, they can now see why the club went to these efforts to sign him for top dollar.
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His performance at Manchester City back in November was just a glimpse of what we would see. Playing a part in three of the four goals scored by Liverpool that day, we got to see why he was constantly involved in goals back at Hoffenheim.
He did lose his way somewhat after a scintillating performance away at Manchester City, but we are now starting to see more consistency in his game.
Scoring two goals against Arsenal earlier this month was sign that he can be a serious player for Liverpool. He has the ability to convert, which is something Liverpool seriously need at the moment. He is not a natural goalscorer when juxtaposed with someone like Sergio Aguero, but he can finish chances better than most in the current Liverpool squad.
The moment that the supporters were really pleased came when Liverpool played Norwich a couple of weeks later. Firmino was able to score twice in what was game of the season. His composure for both was on show and further backed the point that he is forever improving during his time at Liverpool.
To show how much faith Klopp has in him, we have seen Christian Benteke completely ignored ever since Klopp has taken charge. With Daniel Sturridge, Danny Ings and Divock Origi all injured, Klopp has put Firmino ahead of Benteke in the number 10 position.
Playing in the false nine of late, Firmino has caused chaos for most opposition defenders. We saw that in his performances against Arsenal and Norwich.
Firmino still has a long way to go. He is far from the finished article and needs to keep improving, but under Klopp, that seems inevitable.
What many forget is Firmino is a special player that lacks other special players around him. His mind, very much like Philippe Coutinho’s, is on another wave length. When Klopp gets to bring in his own players, we will see the best out of Liverpool’s number 11. For now though, he has to play alongside what Klopp has at his disposal, but it is promising to see some goals and assists from the big-money signing.
Modern-day football fans are rarely patient, but Firmino might be a good example why it sometimes takes time and why patience is required. Liverpool are still yet to see the best of Firmino, but when it comes, they will be in for one hell of a ride.
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