Firmino is a player who has it all. He has ability in abundance (with huge potential too) and bags and bags of luck. All the best players are lucky!
He reads the game beautifully, and is an enormous part of everything good that we do. When he's on his game, he scores amazing goals, and gets those tap ins we all love to see. When he's not with it at all, a passenger, wasteful, unproductive, he's magnificently able to ensure that Salah and Mane are getting more of the ball. See, when he's poor, he's poor on purpose. It's quite brilliant. You get to notice his team mates more!
He draws away the attention of the attacking three, and by running around lots and lots, he draws out the defenders, confuses them even, and opens up the space for others. Some times he appears to do more without the ball than with the ball. You really have to take time to analyse his game to get the best out of him. Criticism is often that he doesn't do enough, goes missing, or lacks the striker's finish. But, he's not a striker see. He's not even a false nine. He's a Firmino. One of a kind. Look at his movement, and his running, his sprints, his touches, his step overs, his shot ratio, it's incredible. It's not about goals for Firmino. Even when you might think goals are important! It's about what he could do. Just imagine.
He's a tactical dream. He plays up front "as a striker" but we can always excuse anything he does, because tactically, he probably wasn't supposed to do it. Klopp doesn't play him for the reasons that one might normally expect a manager to play a player. His expectations are on another level. It's what he doesn't do, that distinguishes him from what other player can do.
And that's where the luck come's in. See, firstly he's lucky that he is Brazilian. That in itself means he is brilliant and has incredible potential. Secondly, he's lucky that Coutinho stayed. Because having a Brazlian team mate of the Coutinho-class just means Firmino has to play. Then there's Klopp. What luck! See, Klopp will always be able to see what Firmino offers, even when he offered nothing. He's also lucky to have a fan base that understand him so well. We don't mind when our only proper Striker is on the bench and Firmino has his place. We understand. We know... that Firmino could have one of those incredible games every so often, and that justifies his place. Other fans may see weaknesses, we do not. Other fans may be surprised that we play Firmino as a striker even though his goal ratio is poor, but we do not. We can see exactly why he plays.
That luck should see him through endless matches. That luck will carve him out a Suarez-Liverpool-career. Heralded forever.
Ability in abundance. Huge potential. Bags of luck. Our Firmino.