Soon-to-be free agent striker Roberto Firmino is reportedly “leaning towards” signing a contract extension with Liverpool amid speculation surrounding his future.
Roberto Firmino’s future at Anfield has come under the spotlight following the signing of forward Cody Gakpo, but the forward is “happy” at Liverpool and still prefers a contract extension.
That’s the report from Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, who says the talks over a fresh deal between the Reds and the Brazilian’s representative are “positive and ongoing,” but the 31-year-old is not going to rush into making a decision amid interest from Saudi clubs, who are said to be “pushing” to secure his services at the same time.
Firmino, who joined Liverpool from Hoffenheim in 2015, is one of the club’s longest-serving players. The Liverpool attacker has been an excellent performer for the Premier League giants over the past half a decade or so. He has made nearly 350 appearances for Liverpool and scored a total of 107 goals.
The forward has been an integral part of their success throughout Klopp’s time as manager. The Brazilian forward has won every major club honour under the sun during his spell with Liverpool, including both the Champions League and Premier League.
News #Firmino: He is still leaning towards a contract extension with Liverpool, he is happy but no fast decision. Talks ongoing and positive. But: He has requests from Saudi Arabia. Some clubs are pushing. But not Al-Nassr. #LFC @SkySportDE 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/B3h3t8QLhl
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) January 4, 2023
He also has 55 caps for Brazil but did not make the squad for the recent 2022 World Cup in Qatar. That is despite showing sparkling form at club level in the first half of the season, scoring nine goals and providing four assists across all competitions.
With Roberto Firmino’s contract set to end at the end of the season, there has been much speculation around his future, with rumours ranging from a new Liverpool contract to a big move to Barcelona to potentially heading to Saudi Arabia for a payday.
Firmino would be reasonable to accept a handsome offer to play in Saudi Arabia, and it would be a major boost to the Middle-East country’s growing football presence in the region ahead of a 2030 World Cup bid if the Brazilian star could join Ronaldo as one of their league’s marquee players.
Now that he is in the final six months of his deal at Anfield, Firmino is free to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs.
Still, Firmino may believe he still has a lot left in the tank to deliver the goods at the highest level and is hinging towards staying put in Merseyside by putting pen to paper on an extension.
Liverpool were in talks with the 31-year-old over a potential contract extension earlier this season. But it was unclear if he would be offered a new deal, with the recent additions of Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, and now Cody Gakpo raising doubts about the Brazilian’s role in the team.
As far as the Reds boss Klopp is concerned, though, he is “definitely” planning to keep the Brazilian around the block beyond this campaign, and has revealed the clubs are “in talks” with him about a fresh deal, a piece of news that may delight the Anfield faithful who still think he’s got a lot more still to give in a Red shirt.
“We’re in talks with Bobby and I want him to stay. No impact,” Klopp said in his press conference ahead of the shock Brentford defeat.
