Roberto Firmino has revealed the truth behind Mohamed Salah taking his No.11 shirt at Liverpool in 2017.
It was long assumed that Firmino’s selflessness allowed Salah to claim his number following the Egyptian winger’s £36.9million transfer from Roma six years ago. Firmino had been Liverpool’s No.11 since joining the Reds during Brendan Rodgers ‘ final few months as manager in the summer of 2015, quickly becoming a fan favourite once Jurgen Klopp had taken over.
But Salah ended up sporting the iconic number from the beginning of the 2017-18 season, a campaign which sparked the club’s greatest period of success since their mid-1980s heyday. After leaving Liverpool this past summer to join Saudi Arabian side Al Ahli, Firmino has finally opened up on how he became the Reds’ No.9.
I should clarify something,” the Brazilian forward explained, writing for the Guardian. “Some people talked about how it was to my credit that I gave the number 11 shirt to Mo Salah when he arrived at the club and that helped the whole thing start off on the right foot. It looked like a selfless gesture that, in the context of the story of the trio I formed with those guys, fitted my style of play.”
Firmino, 32, then stated: “I simply decided to wear the number nine. It had been available since the previous season, after Christian Benteke’s departure, but it was only in that summer of 2017 that I thought I could transition from being a false nine to becoming the actual number nine.
