On multiple weekends every year, you can find a large group of people all coming together to sing songs, praising those in front of them. This is a place where everyone shares the same belief; a haven for many people. This is Anfield.
Another place which shares many of those characteristics is a church, and one year after Roberto Firmino, an iconic figure of Liverpool, left Merseyside, he finds himself as a Pastor of his own Evangelical Church which he founded in his home country of Brazil.
Firmino scored 111 goals for the Reds during his eight years at the club. He was part of the front three in which many Liverpool fans can be found nostalgically looking back on: Sadio Mane, Mo Salah, and Firmino.
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At the end of last season when his contract was up, the Brazilian forward picked out a move to Al-Ahli, a team in the Saudi Pro League. That summer saw a host of big players moving over to Saudi Arabia.
In Saudi, his teammates consist of top players such as Allan Saint-Maximin, Riyad Mahrez, Franck Kessié, and Edouard Mendy.
When Firmino said goodbye to Anfield, it was a scene that would make even the toughest of fans shed a tear. He helped Liverpool win countless trophies, including scoring the extra time winner against Flamengo to give them their first FIFA Club World Cup.
It seems now that the footballing scene in Saudi Arabia has ridden its wave and has now begun to slow down. The overwhelming tsunami of player after player being offered multi-million-pound contracts has not become a surprise nor a shock to European football fans anymore.
Firmino’s side finished third in the league, 17 points off Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr FC, and 31 points away from Aleksandar Mitrovic’s Al Hilal. As with the likes of Jordan Henderson, Firmino hasn’t taken to the Saudi league like many may have expected.
The Premier League winner went 16 league games without scoring for his new club. He now has 9 goals and 7 assists in 34 appearances. The ex-Liverpool man had started his new venture as captain of the club, eventually losing the armband. During his goal drought, he even ended up joining a few games as a substitute.
The Brazilians most recent journey has taken him to a different position. Firmino and his wife Larissa Pereira shared a post on social media that said: “Since our first encounter with Christ, a desire burned in our hearts. We want people to feel this love that reached us. Now we have another desire and responsibility: to become pastors on behalf of God.”
Currently, there are no official churches in Saudi Arabia with it being a country that adheres to Islam. Now a Pastor, the lack of ability to act out his religious values could have an impact on his time there. According to talkSPORT, there was a chance of him moving during the last January transfer window with clubs like Fulham supposedly being offered the player.
Firmino and Henderson had both departed to Saudi and in a short amount of time had found themselves in a period of dismay. This could be caused by many things, whether it be the level of football not being what they expected, or the idea of living in Saudi wasn’t suiting them and their families, even while earning millions a month.
Indeed, Firmino’s next move will be intriguing. Turning 33 this year, there’s little time to waste and he could well find himself following Henderson in departing Saudi before the summer is out.