Roberto Firmino yesterday appeared to Liverpool for the first time after signing for the club on a £21.3million transfer fee potentially rising to £29million through clauses from Bundesliga club Hoffenheim this summer.
The Brazilian could therefore become the third most expensive signing ever for the Merseyside club after Andy Carroll’s £35 million fee and Christian Benteke’s £32.5 million fee.
The Brazilian was on an extended leave following Brazil’s Copa America campaign and was officially unveiled on Wednesday.
Although he is primarily an attacking midfielder but he has good eye for goals also. He found the net 49 times in 153 games for Hoffenheim.
Liverpool legend and currently a football pundit, Jamie Carragher has warned Liverpool fans that they should not want instant success from the new signing as he could potentially become another Alberto Aquilani or could become big enough to emulate Luis Suarez.
Italian midfielder Alberto Aquilani joined Liverpool in 2009 around £17million and had big shoes of Xabi Alonso to fill in but he failed to make an impact despite being a fan favourite.
Writing in his Daily Mail column, Carragher has warned that the same fate could befall Firmino: “Though 95 per cent of Liverpool supporters have never seen Firmino in action – YouTube doesn’t count – they believe he is already on his way to becoming an icon.
“He comes from Brazil, his style is similar to Luis Suarez’s and his form for Hoffenheim was brilliant, leaving fans saying: ‘Imagine what he’ll be like for us!’
“That is the mystique of buying players from abroad. Firmino could well be another Suarez; he could also be another Alberto Aquilani.”
Roberto Firmino has got the number 11 kit at Anfield and expectations are already high from the South American wizard and we have to wait to see if he can thrive on the pressure.