In football, it is common practice to label players in a stereotypical way. Some are overrated, some are so-called 'media darlings' regardless of their performance, and some are underrated.
For some reason, Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino falls into the latter category. All of us are guilty of this, to be honest. When we talk about the Reds' power and elitism up front, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah come into mind. Firmino is the last name on that list.
When this little-known Brazilian was signed by the Merseyside club in the summer of 2015, not many had an idea about his overall game. Brendan Rodgers certainly didn't when he made him play as a wing-back against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
However, Jurgen Klopp had a plan regarding the role the 29-year-old should play week in week out. The player hasn't looked back since. He is probably one of the most important players in the team, and the "orchestrator" of whatever they do going forward in the final third.
Despite all that, below we look at the reason why Firmino continues to be underrated in the Liverpool team and in the eyes of the general footballing community:
Unselfish Work On and Off the Ball
Roberto Firmino is perhaps the only number 9 in football, who is happy even if he doesn't score goals. He loves working for the team, creating space for others and also make sure that he is the first line of defence pressing from the front.
In Klopp's system, the 29-year-old is more of a false nine, like a coupled version of an attacking midfielder and a support striker. His role is tuned in such a way that he is happy working in between the lines on the ball instead of always playing on the shoulder of the opposition defence.
By doing that, he stages confusion in the minds of defenders. Sometimes, the centre-backs are drawn into following him in spaces they wouldn't want to. That, in turn, allows wide forwards Mane and Salah to make runs in the box and get in better positions to score goals.
Furthermore, Firmino is probably the best non-defensive-positioned player who can work like a defender off the ball. His energy to close people down from the front sets the tone for the team to follow suit and have a good defensive shape about them.
Now, while the above-mentioned things sound good and are very essential to how Liverpool play, they do not add up in the stats column. For that reason, at times, the Brazilian is left behind in the conversation of a great forward.
Looking at his stats, the 29-year-old has scored 56 goals in 166 league appearances for Liverpool, at an average of 0.33 goals per game. 20 assists in that time at the rate of 0.12 per game isn't exactly setting the world alight as well.
If we analyse his game solely from the forward numbers' viewpoint, he should not have been a forward of a team who are European Champions, Club World Champions and Premier League champions-elect.
There are people who only look at the stats, and truth be told, it matters when you are analysing the performance of a central striker of a team. In that sense, we can understand why Firmino is so under-talked in the media in terms of what he contributes to the team. Let's say, he doesn't get the same limelight compared to the other two forwards.
However, the game has evolved a lot in the past decade. Klopp's philosophy and Firmino's game suits in such a way that no other striker could replace him in the team.
Looking at his stats of this season (via FootballCritic) in terms of ball recovery and work in the final third, he has made 0.2 ball recoveries per game in the league and 0.4 per game in the Champions League.
An average of around 18 final third passes per game shows that the Brazilian is there to supply balls to others in dangerous positions.
Let us, for example, now compare Firmino's heatmap with an out-and-out striker Sergio Aguero for Liverpool v Manchester City game earlier this season:
Firmino heatmap(L) and Aguero heatmap(R)
The contrasting heatmaps show a clear difference between the Liverpool man and a proper striker. Some of Firmino's work is in his own half, which is unique for a number nine playing in a high-octane open game. It is not as if City were sitting deep and forcing him to come short and link the play up all game.
Conclusion
Sometimes we have seen Liverpool playing with a front line of Salah, Mane with a proper number nine like Divock Origi/Daniel Sturridge and seen them struggle. The former two thrive off what Firmino does for them.
The 29-year-old is a fabulous player and will continue to be for Liverpool. The underrated tag is probably why he continues to thrive in the role of a second-fiddle man in the team.
The less the people talk about him, the more he would be able to work his magic in an unselfish way for the betterment of the team.
The media and people's stereotype won't change unless you are a Liverpool fan who loves to chant "Si Senor, the best in the world is Bobby Firmino!"
