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Former Liverpool defender Steve Nicol has claimed that the Reds will not be worse off if they sell Roberto Firmino in the summer. According to the Scot, the Brazilian international has been way below his lofty standards and does not bring much to the table for Jurgen Klopp’s side.
Vying for a place in the starting XI with the likes of Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz, and Diogo Jota, Firmino has found it difficult to get regular game time. The 30-year-old, who has also had a couple of injury concerns to deal with, has only started nine Premier League games this season, scoring five times. Jota, meanwhile, has scored 15 league goals in the current campaign.
Analyzing the attacking depth of Klopp’s men, Nicol feels Firmino does not offer enough to the team. Disclosing his reasoning behind not being worried about letting Firmino leave, Nicol told ESPN Extra Time (via YouTube):
“You have to think eventually, if you've signed they all up and you've got five of them, then I would suggest Salah will always play if he's fit, Mane has to play and it kind of seems like Diaz is the third one so the other two...I don't think it would be the worst thing in the world if Firmino did go because I've been waiting all of this season for him to be back to what made Firmino such a great player, it hasn't been happening.”
He also thinks that the forward’s first touch is not good enough anymore and the former Hoffenheim man has been struggling over the last year-and-a-half.
Nicol added:
“Particularly his touch, the way he would assist the other 2 and generally his overall play hasn't been particularly good for 12-18 months.”
The 30-year-old, who has scored 11 goals in 31 games across all competitions this season, is out of contract in June 2023. Since joining Liverpool in 2015, the former Hoffenheim striker has played 323 games for the Merseyside giants, registering 98 goals and 73 assists.
Chelsea will meet Liverpool in the FA Cup final
Earlier this year, Liverpool overcame Chelsea on penalties to win the League Cup. On 14 May, the Blues will have the opportunity to take revenge when the two meet in the FA Cup final.
Courtesy of their relatively straightforward 2-0 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday, Thomas Tuchel's side will face the Reds in the summit clash. Klopp’s Liverpool, on the other hand, overcame Manchester City in a hotly-contested 3-2 win on Saturday (16 April).
This would be Chelsea’s third consecutive FA Cup final appearance. They lost the last two iterations to Arsenal (2020) and Leicester City (2021), respectively. Liverpool, on the other hand, have not played in a FA Cup final in a decade.
In their last FA Cup final appearance in the 2011-12 season, they lost 2-1 to the Blues.
