Former England manager Sam Allardyce suggested that Liverpool attacker Roberto Firmino gets frustrated over not scoring as many goals as Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah.
The experienced football manager remarked on Firmino possibly getting frustrated over not being as prolific as the Reds’ other attackers when commentating on Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Arsenal on Saturday.
“This front three… perhaps only Firmino gets a little frustrated that he doesn’t get quite as many (goals) as Salah and Mane,” said Allardyce on talkSPORT (18:37pm, Saturday, August 24th).
Clive Tyldesley was perplexed by Allardyce’s suggestion that Firmino could be frustrated over not scoring as many as his teammates as he quickly pointed out that the 27-year-old always has a smile on his face.
“He’s never got a smile off his face Roberto Firmino!” replied the commentator.
OPINION
Tyldesley made Allardyce look silly over suggesting that Firmino is one to suffer frustration due to his teammates impressing, as like the commentator pointed out, is the 27-year-old ever not smiling? The Brazilian seems to love every moment he is on the football pitch for Jurgen Klopp’s side and doesn’t seem jealous of his teammates stealing the headlines. It seems very unlikely that after impressively scoring 12 league goals in 34 outings last season, that he is kept awake over the thought that Mane and Salah both got 22 league goals in that campaign to jointly win the Premier League Golden Boot alongside Arsenal’s Pierre-Emmerick Aubameyang. Firmino may not be hitting the back of the net, but he clearly knows his worth to Jurgen Klopp’s side. The Brazilian registered seven league assists last season, and constantly worked the keeper in order to see opportunities for his teammates open up as he averaged 2.2 shots per game (Source: WhoScored). So with that in mind, it’s unclear why Allardyce thought Firmino could be frustrated.
