Liverpool’s German-samba hybrid is gunning for his first start at Arsenal and believes the partnership with his fellow Brazilian will spark club and country

Roberto Firmino is retracing the steps that have taken him from Brazil’s north-east to England’s north-west when he recounts an event that demonstrates how far his country has departed from the style that once brought international acclaim and titles.

Neymar tells Manchester United he is open to joining from Barcelona Read more

It was 2008 and Liverpool’s £29m summer signing had secured a trial at São Paulo thanks to a dentist-turned-agent, Marcellus Portella, who spotted the teenager playing for a local club in Maceió. Firmino’s lifelong dream of turning professional depended, so he thought, on impressing coaches at one of Brazil’s biggest, richest and most successful clubs. He was rejected without kicking a ball. The reason? He did not meet their physical requirements.

“I never had a proper trial at São Paulo,” recalls the 23-year-old. “I wasn’t accepted because I didn’t have a chance to play football. I mean, I didn’t have a chance to play with a football. It was just a physical assessment and I didn’t have a chance to do what I do well. One week later I had another trial at Figueirense and was accepted straight away, on my first day. They had different ways of assessing a player. That happens in football sometimes, but I never doubted that I would make it.”

Firmino flourished at Figueirense, leading to a €4.5m move to Hoffenheim in 2010, and in fairness to the São Paulo coaches and their checklists it was only by bulking up in the Bundesliga that he “made it” in terms of the Seleção and a move to the Premier League.

Liverpool’s most intriguing summer signing cites Ronaldinho as his childhood inspiration and yet it was as a team player with a relentless work ethic, as much as any individual gifts, that he caught Brendan Rodgers’ eye. “I’ve been impressed with his quality and his touch, which is natural,” the Liverpool manager said. “But it is his ability to work and press the game that were key things for us when we brought him in.” Ten assists in a Hoffenheim team that finished eighth last season, the third highest tally in the division, more successful dribbles than any player except Bayer Leverkusen’s Karim Bellarabi and winning possession 28 times in the final third, again the second highest total in the Bundesliga, no doubt appealed to Anfield’s statisticians too.

Firmino says: “I am very proud of being Brazilian but I am also thankful for having the chance to play in Germany for four and a half years. I have completely changed the way I play football because Germany is a tougher, faster game which is more tactical with tighter marking. It was a great experience to have a chance to play in Germany for that time and, while I’m very proud to be a Brazilian player, I consider myself to be half Brazilian and half German on the pitch.”

Liverpool supporters have had to be patient for a glimpse of this Teutonic-Samba hybrid, with Firmino restricted to two substitute appearances totalling 32 minutes so far. The midfielder missed the club’s pre-season tour having been granted extended leave after Brazil’s poor Copa América campaign, when he carried extra responsibility for Dunga’s team in attack once Neymar was ruled out of the tournament with a four-match ban. It was also in Chile where Liverpool’s chief executive, Ian Ayre, signalled a departure from last summer’s chaotic transfer dealings by arriving mid-tournament to conclude the Firmino deal, although the player was already set on a move to Anfield.

Jordon Ibe keeps working on being in the goals for Liverpool Read more

“I knew about Liverpool’s interest before the tournament,” Firmino says. “And I instantly thought it would be an interesting idea for me because I knew Lucas and Coutinho were playing here. I had the chance to play alongside Philippe for the national team so I spoke to him about Liverpool and I knew it would be a great opportunity for me. He said it’s a great club with a great squad and a great team spirit and now I’ve discovered that for myself because the players have given me a really warm welcome.”

Firmino hopes the wait for his full Liverpool debut will be over on Monday at Arsenal, where Rodgers may be forced into a midfield reorganisation by a foot injury to his captain, Jordan Henderson. “I’m working hard towards that,” he admits. “That is my aim but there’s a healthy competition in the squad right now and the manager knows who should be starting games, so all I can do is keep on working so I will be ready when I am given the chance to start.”

It was Coutinho who sold Liverpool to Firmino, just as Lucas Leiva did to the then Internazionale player before he moved to Anfield in 2013. Together, Firmino insists, they can demonstrate that Brazil remains home to purveyors of the beautiful game, not simply the physical.

He says: “It would be hard for anyone to be as good as Ronaldinho or Ronaldo but me and Philippe are going to do our best to get close to them and be the best players we can be for Brazil. It was ugly what happened in the World Cup semi-final against Germany but there are new players in Brazil to turn things around and who can show that Brazil still has lots of talent and opportunities to be successful.”