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While the rest of the world speculates how Liverpool are going to spend their £142 million windfall from Philippe Coutinho, the club appears to be prepared to make Roberto Firmino the first direct benefactor. A report out this morning from The Telegraph indicates that Liverpool are preparing a contract extension, one that could keep him at Anfield for the rest of his career.
As exciting as the prospect of seeing Bobby’s pearly whites gleaming at Anfield until he retires is, the claim is more than a bit confusing without further detail. Firmino’s current deal is set to expire in the summer of 2020, by which time Bobby would be 28-years-old. Even adding another 5 years to the contract would not necessarily see out Firmino’s career (although, by 33, his best days would certainly be behind him).
Regardless of the details, if accepted, such an offer would be good news for the club, especially in the wake of recent events. And it would certainly be good for Firmino, who no doubt is more shaken than most after losing his fellow Brazilian from the squad.
Somehow, Bobby’s 16 goals and 8 assists in all competitions have failed to impress outside observers. The “not a true #9” is tied with Jamie Vardy for the eighth most goals in the Premier League, and trails other “proper #9s” Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku by one league goal.
Well, if no one else will show that strange and industrious Brazilian love, we sure as hell should.
Of course, as we saw with that other guy, long-term contracts mean very little these days. But a new deal would give Liverpool, at the very least, more bargaining power if one of the Spanish giants realizes they stole the wrong Brazilian.
Lastly, I would be remiss for not mentioning another big factor in all of this: Firmino’s release clause. A leak of several contracts in 2016 revealed that Firmino’s release clause was £83 million (and that it could not be triggered by Arsenal, unlucky), which is becoming downright affordable these days.
So yeah, show that man his money. And nix the release clause while you’re at it.