Roberto Firmino Barbosa de Oliveira (born 2 October 1991) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder for Qatar Stars League club Al Sadd.
After starting his career with Figueirense in 2009, Firmino spent four and a half seasons at TSG Hoffenheim. His 16 goals in 33 games in the 2013–14 Bundesliga season earned him the award for the league's Breakthrough Player. In July 2015, he signed for Liverpool. In the 2018–19 season, Firmino won the UEFA Champions League, and the following campaign claimed the UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup (after scoring the winner in the final), and the 2019–20 Premier League title. He also won the FA Cup and EFL Cup with Liverpool in the 2021–22 season. Firmino is widely regarded as a cult hero in Liverpool. In 2023, Firmino decided not to extend his contract at Liverpool, and eventually left on a free transfer to Saudi club Al-Ahli, after eight years in England. With Al-Ahli, Firmino won the AFC Champions League Elite two years later.
Firmino made his international debut for Brazil in November 2014. He represented the nation at the 2015, 2019 and 2021 Copa América, where he won the 2019 edition of the tournament. He also represented the nation at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Firmino was born in the Trapiche da Barra neighbourhood of Maceió, Alagoas, growing up near the Estadio Rei Pele. He grew up in a poor family and was described as being "humble" and "football mad". His father Jose was a street vendor and his mother was a housewife. He also has a sister. Firmino began playing for his school team, earning a trial at local club CRB. At 13, Firmino joined the youth team of CRB. He initially wore the No 5 shirt, which in Brazil is reserved for the most defensive midfielder. When required, he also played as a defender.
Firmino joined Figueirense's youth setup in 2008, aged 17, after starting out at CRB. He was discovered by a dentist, Marcellus Portella. With the latter, he was mainly used as a defensive midfielder.
Firmino made his first-team debut on 24 October 2009, coming on as a half-time substitute in a 2–1 home loss against Ponte Preta in Série B.
Firmino scored his first goal on 8 May 2010, with the winner in an away win against São Caetano. He contributed with eight goals in 36 appearances during the season, as Figueirense FC returned to Série A after a two-year absence.
Firmino signed with TSG Hoffenheim in December 2010, with the contract running until June 2015. He formally arrived at Hoffenheim on 1 January 2011. Then Hoffenheim manager Ernst Tanner commented that they were "pleased to hire a Brazilian talent". He made his debut a month after his signing in a Bundesliga defeat against Mainz 05, where he came on as a 75th-minute substitute for Sebastian Rudy. He scored his first goal for the club on 16 April, the only goal of a league victory against Eintracht Frankfurt.
He was dropped from the first-team squad along with Chinedu Obasi at the end of November 2011 for showing up late for training, missing the league match against Bayer Leverkusen. He scored two more goals that season, against Wolfsburg and Borussia Mönchengladbach. In the 2012–13 season, Firmino made 36 appearances and scored seven goals in all competitions.
In July 2013, Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow made a €12 million bid for Firmino. Hoffenheim captain Andreas Beck hailed Firmino's development as "outstanding" in August 2013. On 27 March 2014, Firmino extended his contract with the club, signing a three-year extension. He finished the 2013–14 Bundesliga season tied as the fourth highest scorer with 16 goals, and was named the league's Breakthrough Player.
On 23 June 2015, Hoffenheim and Firmino agreed terms for him to transfer to Premier League club Liverpool for up to £29 million on conclusion of the tournament, subject to a work permit. Liverpool confirmed the signing the following day, subject to a medical. The deal was finalised on 4 July. Firmino made his debut on 9 August, replacing Jordon Ibe for the final 12 minutes of a 1–0 win away to Stoke City. On 21 November, Firmino scored his first goal for Liverpool in a 4–1 victory over Manchester City at the City of Manchester Stadium. This came after new manager Jürgen Klopp moved Firmino to centre-forward ahead of Christian Benteke. In January 2016, Firmino was described by Paul Little of the Irish Examiner as steadily improving during his first season in England, although an inability to combine with centre forward Christian Benteke drew criticism.
However, in 2016, Firmino's form improved as Klopp played him alone up front in a false 9 role. He scored braces against Arsenal and Norwich City that month; the latter performance, in which he also assisted in a 5–4 win, earned comparisons to Raheem Sterling and Luis Suárez. With his form improved, Firmino was voted to be Liverpool's Player of the Month in January. On 10 March he scored his first Europa League goal for Liverpool in a 2–0 win over rivals Manchester United at Anfield. Firmino ended the season as Liverpool's league top scorer with 10 goals.
On 23 August, Firmino scored his first goal of the 2016–17 season, scoring in a 5–0 win over Burton Albion in the second round of the EFL Cup. Firmino scored his first league goals of the season in a 4–1 win over Leicester City, scoring a brace, on 10 September. Thus, Firmino became the first player to score in front of Anfield's new Main Stand in that game. On 29 October, Firmino scored in a 4–2 win over Crystal Palace, and on 6 November he scored in a 6–1 over Watford; the latter result saw Liverpool move to 1st position in the league table, the first time under Klopp. Firmino finished the season with 11 goals in 35 appearances in the Premier League, and 12 in 41 in all competitions.
2017–18 season: Champions League runner-up
Before the start of the 2017–18 season, Firmino switched his shirt number to 9, with new signing Mohamed Salah taking his number 11. Firmino scored his first goal of the new season on 12 August, scoring a penalty in a 3–3 draw with Watford. On 23 August, Firmino scored in a 4–2 win over his former club TSG Hoffenheim in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off, with Liverpool winning 6–3 on aggregate to qualify for the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League group stage. On 6 December, he scored in a historic 7–0 win over Spartak Moscow in the Champions League. On 17 December, he scored in a 4–0 away win over AFC Bournemouth, a result which saw Liverpool become the first team in Premier League history to win four consecutive away games by a margin of at least three goals.
On 5 January 2018, during a FA Cup match against rivals Everton, Firmino was the subject of controversy following a clash with Everton defender Mason Holgate. Holgate pushed Firmino into the advertising boards, which was followed by the pair exchanging words, with Firmino seemingly insulting the player. Following the match, Holgate accused Firmino of racially abusing him, which he denied. A day later, the Football Association opened an investigation on the matter. Nearly two months later, after they had taken statements from 12 different players, several referees and consulted two Portuguese lip-readers, the Football Association cleared Firmino of any offence as a result of "insufficient evidence".
On 14 January 2018, Firmino scored in a 4–3 home win over Manchester City, which saw Liverpool end City's unbeaten league run. On 27 January, Firmino scored and missed a penalty in a 2–3 defeat to West Bromwich Albion in the fourth round of the FA Cup. On 14 February, Firmino scored in a dominant 5–0 away win over Porto in the first leg of the Champions League round of sixteen. On 10 April, he scored in a 2–1 win over Manchester City in the second leg of the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League, which saw Liverpool advance to the semi-finals with a 5–1 aggregate win. On 29 April, Firmino signed a new long-term contract with Liverpool. Firmino started and played the whole 90 minutes in the 2018 Champions League final, with Liverpool losing 3–1 to Real Madrid.