Brazilian Love: Fabinho Hails Firmino’s Tactical Flexibility

My new subgenre of Liverpool news has become any combination of our three brilliant Brazilians complimenting each other. This time it’s Fabinho heaping praise on the mercurial and weird-in-the-best-way front man Roberto Firmino.

“Firmino is a player who is really good at adapting to different positions. He is a No.9 but he helps a lot in build-up play,” Fabinho recently told the official site.

“He is very important to the team in many stages of the game; he plays as if in the No.10 role or a No.8 role, he is a really smart guy who adapts to what the team needs.

“He is great at playing with his back to goal and, like I said, in build-up play and starting attacks. He helps a lot in general teamwork as well as being a top finisher. So, yes, he is a really important player for us.”

Liverpool will be unsurprised at this assessment, since they’ve seen Firmino effectively play in multiple positions across the pitch since he’s arrived from Germany. This seems particularly important to Jürgen Klopp, who appears to value and prioritize the tactical flexibility of his players in his system.

It also explains why Firmino is clearly a long time favorite of the boss, and why Klopp has been singing his praises since the ink was dried on his own Anfield contract back in 2015.