20 January 2024 , 07:45
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Liverpool icon Roberto Firmino has admitted he did not have a great relationship with ex-Reds boss Brendan Rodgers during their shared time at Anfield.
The Brazilian forward established himself as one of the best signings of Liverpool's Premier League history during his eight-year spell at the club, but Firmino has since conceded that he did not get off to the best of starts after arriving from Bundesliga outfit Hoffenheim in the summer of 2015 for a fee of around £29million.
Firmino was one of a number of attacking additions to join the club that summer, alongside Christian Benteke, Danny Ings and Taiwo Awoniyi. The Brazil international hardly hit the ground running and failed to cement his place as a mainstay in the starting line-up under Rodgers.
In his book, ‘Si Senor: My Liverpool Years’, Firmino discussed those difficult days under Rodgers, claiming that the current Celtic boss didn't understand the forward's style of play. "On the pitch, I had a terrible start that left me wondering how this was going to work out," the current Al-Ahli ace explained.
"I rarely played as a striker and when I did it was as a winger, with Christian Benteke playing through the middle. I remember games against Manchester United and Arsenal where I played on the right side of midfield, with the responsibility to defend more than play; I spent so much of my time dropping so deep and so wide I was practically a full-back.
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"I was a long way from the parts of the pitch where I could truly make an impact. It was clear that the coach, Brendan Rodgers, didn’t know how to use me. I don’t think he understood my style of play – I definitely never understood his plans for me. Maybe that was because he didn’t really have any."
Rodgers was sacked from his post as Liverpool boss three months into the 2015/16 season, but would cross paths with Firmino once again when he returned to the Premier League as manager of Leicester City.
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Roberto Firmino has admitted he did not have a great relationship with former Liverpool boss Brendan RodgersThe pair faced off on Boxing Day of 2019 in a clash that saw the Reds run out 4-0 winners, with Firmino bagging a brace. The Brazilian, who is usually notably mellow, has admitted there was an extra element to his strikes at the King Power that day.
"I never went towards the opposition’s fans, never taunted rivals, never provoked anyone and always shared the celebrations with team-mates,” he explained, while recalling those goals against Leicester.
"But that day at the King Power Stadium, I admit, I was delivering a message to the coach on the other bench, a reminder to Brendan Rodgers that he hadn’t believed in me like the boss [Klopp] did."