Roberto Firmino: The Brazilian's 10 best moments for Liverpool

Roberto Firmino’s icon status will be cemented among Liverpool fans for eternity.

As our

Señor closes the Liverpool page and begins his new chapter in Saudi Arabia, what better way to honour him than to relive the moments that made Merseyside fall in love with him in the first place?

News broke this week that Firmino will be continuing his football journey with Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League, after penning a three-year deal and joining the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kanté in accepting lucrative proposals outside of Europe.

While his next destination was unknown until this week, Liverpool fans were preparing for his departure long before the transfer window opened, with the 31-year-old's contract ticking down and the inevitability of him leaving on a free becoming more and more evident.

However, our Bobby Dazzler stayed focused and committed to Liverpool until the very end and what followed was the most drawn-out and emotional goodbye our fans have experienced since Steven Gerrard.

So as he begins life away from Liverpool, let Anfield Watch take you on a trip down memory lane into Roberto Firmino's best moments in a Liverpool shirt.

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1. First Liverpool goal

Roberto Firmino began his career in Liverpool with a slow start. He was one of Brendan Rodgers' final Liverpool signings, fans were unsure of his best position and he was struggled to find the back of the net in his early outings.

Arriving at Anfield for around £29m meant that the pressure was on, and a few weeks after Jurgen Klopp arrived in October 2015, the Brazilian scored his first of 111 goals against none other than Manchester City at the Etihad.

Fans were ecstatic as Liverpool cruised to a 4-1 win, with Firmino not only setting up the second to Philippe Coutinho, but taking advantage of the favour being returned for the third, with Coutinho laying the ball to Bobby for an easy finish.

The goal wasn't anything special, but his performance that day was. Firmino had introduced himself to Liverpool fans, and they weren't going to forget him.

2. THAT turn against Villarreal

If we tried to fit every silky touch, acrobatic finish, or no-look pass into this list, we'd be here for months.

But one moment that stands out in everyone's memory came in Firmino's debut season. Set the scene: it's the Europa League semi-final against Villarreal at Anfield in May 2016, one hell of a stage to showcase your samba magic wouldn't you say?

The ball was heading away from the goal and towards the corner flag but that didn't matter. One cheeky look over the shoulder, followed by a quick touch with each foot, saw Bobby completely sell Roberto Soldado down the river in a blink of an eye, much to the delight of the roaring Anfield crowd.

A thing of absolute beauty, and a sign of things to come.

3. His best Liverpool goal?

If you asked any football fan to describe Firmino's best attributes, they'd likely note things like: intricate touches, quick feet, impeccable vision — all of which are true by the way.

But this thunderous volley against Stoke in 2017 demonstrated that he could also hit them!

The ball was looped over the top of the Stoke defence, just in front of the Brazilian, who let it bounce before having an "I am him" moment.

Pace. Power. Precision. An unstoppable strike which ended up winning the game. Perfection.

4. Selfless Bobby

This moment is more about what Firmino didn't do, rather than what he did.

During Liverpool's 3-0 smashing of Stoke in 2017/18 season, our number nine famously sacrificed a reported fee of £45,000 in goal bonuses.

Sadio Mane had chipped the ball over the head of Lee Grant and the ball slowly rolled towards the goal. With the opportunity to force it in, claim the goal and the associated bonus, Firmino instead opted to watch it over the line and ensure Mane got the strike instead.

Alexa, define: team player.

5. Eyes on PSG

Liverpool's first Champions League group game in 2018/19 was an absolute blockbuster, and of course Firmino was there to steal the show.

Starting off as a substitute due to a freak eye injury that the player later admitted could've left him blind, Bobby watched from the sidelines as Liverpool saw a hard-fought 2-0 lead evaporate with PSG pulling it back to 2-2 late on.

After replacing Daniel Sturridge, our magician took the game by the scruff of the neck. Picking up the ball on the right side of the box, international teammate Marquinhos was turned inside out and watched helplessly as Firmino sent a dagger into the far corner to win Liverpool the game at the death!

In celebration, the Brazilian covered his injured eye in front of the Anfield crowd.

6. Hat-trick against Arsenal

One of Bobby's best days in a Liverpool shirt by far was the 5-1 destruction of Arsenal at Anfield in December 2018.

Not only did our number nine score a hat-trick, but his second was a thing of absolute beauty. Sitting down not one, not two, but three Arsenal players in mazy run, before dispatching a calm effort into the bottom corner.

Arsenal simply didn't know what to do and frankly, neither did the Liverpool fans - Anfield erupted.

Firmino finished his Liverpool career with 11 goals in 18 games against the Gunners, the third best in Premier League history.

7. Hat-trick against Watford

From one match ball to another, Firmino's positional play and footballing IQ were on full display during a 5-0 hammering of Watford in 2021.

All three of his goals that day were almost identical. The ball gets played across the box and Firmino is there waiting. Right place, right time, job done. Rinse and repeat.

While not as spectacular as his Arsenal effort, this performance really highlighted how intelligent a player Bobby was for Liverpool.

8. World champion

How could we forget the time when Roberto Firmino scored the winner to crown Liverpool champions of the world?

In a period of just over a year, Bobby helped the Reds win the Premier League, the Champions League, the Super Cup, and to top it all off, he scored the only goal in the Club World Cup final to secure Liverpool the trophy for the first time ever.

It doesn't come much better than that, does it?

9. A definite threat from corners

We'll be honest, across the 2020/21 season, there weren't too many moments to get excited about, but a last-minute bullet header to show up Tim Sherwood was certainly one of them.

A heavily-reduced Anfield crowd, due to Coronavirus restrictions, were all but ready to admit defeat against Tottenham. That was, of course, until Liverpool were awarded a last-ditch corner.

Andy Robertson whipped in a trademark, inch-perfect cross, which was expertly struck by Firmino, delivering a bullet-header into the top corner.

The goal was made even sweeter by Sherwood's infamous commentary, in which he claimed he wasn't "too worried" about Liverpool threat from corners. Ouch.

10. His 111th and final goal

What better way to round off your Liverpool career than scoring in a 4-4 thriller on the last game of the season? Well, apart from winning the game.

Nevertheless, when Firmino received the ball in the Southampton box and effortlessly sat down two defenders, everybody knew exactly where the shot was going to end up.

Roberto Firmino finished his Liverpool career in style and contributed towards the club's success until the very end. That's why he will always be a legend on Merseyside.