A statistic has revealed the root of Liverpool’s current attacking problems and it all revolves around Roberto Firmino.
The Reds were not at the races against Manchester United and paid the price as they lost for the first time in four years at Old Trafford in the league.
However, one issue was glaringly clear. Their attack consisting of Luis Diaz, Mohamed Salah and Firmino was not clicking and the stats reflect that.
If they want to be successful this weekend, then Firmino needs to change and adapt, otherwise, it could be another frustrating performance for the fans.
Roberto Firmino's decline is just sad to watch now.
— Anfield Edition (@AnfieldEdition) August 22, 2022
What did Firmino do so wrong?
It’s obvious that there was a disconnect between the front three, which is strange given how well these players know each other. However, the front three of Diaz, Firmino and Salah have not featured that frequently.
It was former Red Sadio Mane who took over the central attacking role for the second half of the season, and Diogo Jota was also deputized instead of Firmino. Perhaps his lack of game time due to injuries and the form of Mane and Jota have contributed to what we’re seeing now.
The stat in question comes from Comparisonator which states that Firmino was the centre forward that received the ball the most last game-week out of any other forward in the league with 57 received passes. However, a lot of those came deep.
Against United, however, he was a victim of being the false nine role almost too literally. It was clear watching the game at home that Firmino was dropping almost to central midfield to pick up the ball which left the centre-backs defending against no one.
The stats show this and so does his heat map (below) which shows a limited effect on the game. It looks much worse when you compare it to a game where he played well – the difference shows where he should be.
His stats from the game aren’t good as he lost possession 15 times, only had one shot in total and despite having 70 touches, most of them were outside of the box which caused his own side problems.
Roberto Firmino vs Manchester United Heat Map via SofaScore
Roberto Firmino Heat Map vs Benfica 2022 – via Sofascore
Why it affected Diaz and Salah & Liverpool
United sat deep with their lead and welcomed Liverpool onto them, but without a focal point occupying Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane, there was no option for either Diaz and Salah to find or link up with, leaving them frustrated.
There was no one Firmino occupying the centre back for the likes of Salah or Diaz to run in behind or for them to get into the channels between full-back and centre back.
Part of the problem was the service – Trent Alexander-Arnold lost possession 23 times and the lack of creativity in midfield did play its part.
Can someone please inform Roberto Firmino he is not playing in defensive midfield?
— Leanne Prescott (@_lfcleanne) August 22, 2022
When Firmino is in the box, he offers more of a focal point and at least someone to occupy the centre backs which is what his Liverpool career has been built on. During the example game used (3-3 draw with Benfica), he had the same amount of touches (70) but was much more effective.
The telling stat seemed to be that Fabio Carvalho managed more shots in 40 minutes of playing time in the Premier League this season (4) than Roberto Firmino has in 141 minutes (1) – via WhoScored.
Even though his place in the team is temporary, he can still get back to doing the basics of the role right. Against the Cherries, they will dominate possession once again, and his link-up and positioning will be key if Liverpool want to get anything out of the game.
