Some Liverpool supporters on social media were left baffled after John Barnes suggested the club needed to sign a recognised goalscorer.
The former Reds favourite claimed that Jurgen Klopp’s side need a new attacker as Roberto Firmino who currently leads the line isn’t a proper goalscoring No.9.
“I know Salah did incredibly well to score 44 goals but he’ll struggle to repeat last season and he’s not an out and out striker,” said Barnes as quoted by the Liverpool Echo.
“I think Liverpool need a recognised goalscorer, obviously Roberto Firmino is playing in there but he isn’t a No.9.
“They need a proper goalscoring No.9 to play through the middle and provide a different option.”
A handful of Reds fans opted to disagree with Barnes with one tweeting that they now had a reason why Barnes wasn’t currently employed as football manager.
Live 4 Liverpool have rounded up the best tweets by a selection of supporters about Barnes’ comments:
https://twitter.com/fiatstr00/status/1016694251135164417
Found one pic.twitter.com/GoyI2CxwJy
— Lucca (@hughes_lucca) July 10, 2018
— Liverpool Red (@lfcredynwa) July 10, 2018
— Ben Davies (@Ben_Davies97) July 10, 2018
We have three
— Fredrick Liu (@LCH_Fredrick) July 10, 2018
https://twitter.com/Ricey7/status/1016698017582321664
Bench could do with a bit more, but no striker in the world could break into our front three. Bobby Firmino is the reason the formation works
— Za(C)h??????? (@zachacsmith) July 10, 2018
Centre back yes, centre forward no
— HITMANHARJ ? (@hitmanharj) July 10, 2018
No I don't. With the way we play, Firmino is a perfect fit… His the link to how we playing. Unless we can get another Bobby. #LFC
— Breads_OTC (@sphanombika) July 10, 2018
We have 3, atleast!
— ??IGHTY REDS ?????? (@redmansinceday) July 10, 2018
OPINION
Some Liverpool fans clearly don’t think signing a new No.9 should be a priority this summer and it’s hard to agree with them. Firmino may not fit the traditional mould of a No.9 but he fires the goals in for the Reds and is vital to the team’s success. The 26-year-old scored an impressive 27 goals in 54 outings last season and perhaps presence of a traditional No.9 would see his game effected in a negative way. However that said a new attacker, who fitted Barnes’ description, was signed strictly to be cover for Firmino then it wouldn’t be the worst move. A team can always benefit from having a back-up plan and if the right forward become available this summer for a reasonable price then the club must swoop. However the Reds’ priority should still be looking for a suitable goalkeeper to at the very least provide Loris Karius with competition for the No.1 jersey.
