Haaland ‘obvious’ choice but Firmino must stay
Borussia Dortmund star Erling Haaland is the ‘obvious’ choice for Liverpool, but Roberto Firmino must not be sold in the summer.
Those are the words of Andros Townsend, who was quoted in HITC, who believes that the obvious might not work for the Reds.
"“I think Firmino goes very much under the radar, he’s very underrated. People tend not to see his work rate both offensively and defensively and how he brings others into play. That’s partly why Salah and Mane get the goals they do.“On paper, Haaland does look the obvious solution, but when you get them on the pitch it’s difficult as they need the cohesion.”"
We keep hearing how Firmino works harder than anyone else and is invaluable to Jurgen Klopp, even though Liverpool have won the past two games without the Brazilian in the side.
Bobby is currently out with a knee injury, but the return of Diogo Jota has meant Klopp hasn’t felt the pain of his conductor being away.
Liverpool needs to head to the transfer market to address their lack of depth up front, and although Haaland would fit the bill across many categories, Townsend thinks the Norway international would mess with squad chemistry too much.
Liverpool need to make a change
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Sadio Mane has also been poor this season and could be sacrificed on the altar of renewal if he doesn’t manage to turn his campaign around.
Haaland is the obvious choice, Townsend is right, and he’s also the best young striker on the planet right now. Any new signing would have to adjust to the squad and integrate with how Klopp wants to play, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be signed.
That doesn’t mean that Liverpool shouldn’t move to bring in the best talent from around the world. Firmino looked like a shadow of his former self and is nearly 30. Something has to be done about the Brazilian, even if it’s to bring in someone to take the burden off his shoulders.
Imagine what Klopp could achieve with the pace, power and finishing ability of Haaland? He would be a new focal point to build around, especially as Mane and Mohamed Salah tick down towards their final years at the top of their game.