Liverpool's Roberto Firmino is the champion striker who doesn't score goals

Anfield star is the team's leader in so many ways other than putting the ball in the net

July 26, 2020, Newcastle 1 Liverpool 3: Liverpool players celebrate during the last game of the season. Reuters

July 22, 2020, Liverpool 5 Chelsea 3: Naby Keita celebrates scoring the first goal with Georginio Wijnaldum. Reuters

July 15, 2020, Arsenal 2 Liverpool 1: Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk in action against Arsenal's Reiss Nelson. EPA

July 11, 2020, Liverpool 1 Burnley 1: Manager Jurgen Klopp reacts as Liverpool lose their 10-0 per cent home record. AFP

July 8, 2020, Brighton 1 Liverpool 3: Mohamed Salah and teammate Sadio Mane in action against Brighton goalkeeper Mathew Ryan and Dan Burn. EPA

July 5, 2020, Liverpool 2 Aston Villa 0: Curtis Jones celebrates scoring his team's second goal. AFP

July 2, 2020, Manchester City 4 Liverpool 0: Manchester City's Raheem Sterling celebrates with Kevin De Bruyne on a bad night for Liverpool. EPA

June 24, 2020, Liverpool 4 Crystal Palace 0: Sadio Mane celebrates after scoring the final goal. EPA

June 21, 2020, Everton 0 Liverpool 0: Jordan Henderson speaks to his manager Jurgen Klopp after the Mersey derby stalemate, the first game post lockdown. EPA

March 7, 2020, Liverpool 2 Bournemouth 1: James Milner celebrates after a win that takes the club even closer to the Premier League trophy - before the season came to a three-month halt. Reuters

February 29, 2020, Watford 3 Liverpool 0: A shock defeat; Jurgen Klopp, defender Andrew Robertson and midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain at the final whistle. AFP

Ferbruary 24, 2020, Liverpool 3 West Ham 2: Sadio Mane celebrates scoring the late winner after Liverpool came from 2-1 behind. EPA

February 15, 2020, Norwich City 0 Liverpool 1: Sadio Mane scores the only goal to take Liverpool 25 points clear. Reuters

February 01, 2020, Liverpool 4 Southampton 0: Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring the third. Reuters

January 29, 2020, West Ham 0 Liverpool 2: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is delighted after netting the second goal. Reuters

January 23, 2020, Wolves 1 Liverpool 2: Roberto Firmino (R) celebrates with Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk after scoring the second. AFP

January 19, 2020, Liverpool 2 Manchester United 0: Mohamed Salah celebrates after netting the second goal. Getty

January 11, 2020, Tottenham 0 Liverpool 1: Roberto Firmino celebrates with Xherdan Shaqiri. Reuters

January 2, 2020, Liverpool 2 Sheffield United 0: Sadio Mane, left, celebrates after scoring his team's second goal at Anfield. Reuters

December 29, 2019, Liverpool 1 Wolves 0: Jurgen Klopp and Trent Alexander-Arnold at the end of another win at Anfield. Getty

December 26, 2019, Leicester 0 Liverpool 4: James Milner celebrates after scoring the second goal with Jordan Henderson and Georginio Wijnaldum at The King Power Stadium. Getty

December 14, 2019, Liverpool 2 Watford 0: Trent Alexander-Arnold takes a corner. Getty

December 7, 2019, Bournemouth 0 Liverpool 3: Naby Keita nets the second goal at Vitality Stadium. Getty

December 4, 2019, Liverpool 5 Everton 2: Sadio Mane scores the fourth goal in the Mersey derby. Getty

November 30, 2019, Liverpool 2 Brighton 1: Virgil van Dijk celebrates scoring the second goal at Anfield. Getty

November 23, 2019, Crystal Palace 1 Liverpool 2: Roberto Firmino scores his team's second goal at Selhurst Park. Getty

November 10, 2019, Liverpool 3 Manchester City 1: Mohamed Salah celebrates with teammates after scoring the second goal at Anfield. Getty

November 2, 2019, Aston Villa 1 Liverpool 2: Divock Origi watches a Sadio Mane shot cross the line for the second goal. Getty

October 27, 2019, Liverpool 2 Tottenham 1: Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring the second goal from a penalty. Getty

October 20, 2019, Manchester United 1 Liverpool 1: Adam Lallana celebrates after scoring at Old Trafford. Getty

October 5, 2019, Liverpool 2 Leicester 1: James Milner celebrates with Jordan Henderson, Divock Origi and Andy Robertson after scoring the second goal from the penalty spot. Getty

September 28, 2019, Sheffild United 0 Liverpool 1: Georginio Wijnaldum celebrates scoring at Bramall Lane. PA

September 22, 2019, Chelsea 1 Liverpool 2: Roberto Firmino celebrates with teammates after scoring the second goal at Stamford Bridge. Getty

September 14, 2019, Liverpool 3 Newcastle 1: Sadio Mane scores the first goal past Martin Dubravka. Getty

Ausgust 31, 2019, Burnley 0 Liverpool 3: Sadio Mane is tackled by Jack Cork at Turf Moor. Getty

August 24, 2019, Liverpool 3 Arsenal 1: Joel Matip celebrates in front of the Kop after scoring the opening goal. Getty

August 17, 2019, Southampton 1 Liverpool 2: Adrian saves a shot from Jannik Vestergaard at St Mary's Stadium. Getty

August 9, 2019, Liverpool 4 Norwich 1: Mohamed Salah scores the second goal on the opening day of the season at Anfield. Getty

For Roberto Firmino, it was shaping up to be a season like no other long before football was halted.

He delivered the winner in the Club World Cup final but is on the brink of becoming a Premier League champion without scoring against an English club at Anfield.

His lone home strike, against Atletico Madrid, counted for nothing. Liverpool still went out of the Champions League.

Firmino is a player like no other, and not merely because of the extraordinary anomaly whereby possibly England’s most dominant champions will post a 100 per cent home record without a goal from their No 9. The numbers illustrate how idiosyncratic Firmino is.

He can feel both the best defensive striker in the league and the most unselfish. No striker has more assists this season and only one, Sheffield United’s Lys Mousset, averages more per 90 minutes on the pitch.

But creativity comes in part from hassling and harrying. Firmino is Liverpool’s leader of the press, the man who can regain possession.

The Brazilian excels at getting the ball back – something, on average, only five centre-forwards do more often per 90 minutes – but the key element is what he does when he retrieves it. He switches defence to attack.

Much of Jurgen Klopp’s strategy is based around using transitions to break quickly, before the opposition get back into shape, when Liverpool get the ball.

In statistics produced by the Comparisonator website, Firmino tops the charts among centre-forwards for most ball recoveries that lead to a shot within 20 seconds – or quick, deadly counter-attacks, in short – by averaging 0.79 per 90 minutes.

Only one striker gets remotely close; tellingly, it is his former understudy, Southampton’s Danny Ings, at 0.75. Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus, whose high pressing is, Pep Guardiola claims, the best he has seen, is a distant third.

If Firmino initially stands out off the ball, with his incessant effort, he then excels on it.

The figures suggest he is both the busiest and the best striker in possession. He averages 26.1 passes per 90 minutes. That would not be a remarkable tally for a midfielder. It is for a striker.

It puts him in a different league to any of his counterparts, with 20 per cent more than anyone else. The closest are two wingers, assessed purely in their outings in central positions: Southampton Nathan Redmond (21.0) and Tottenham’s Heung-Min Son (20.6). The conventional forwards all have fewer.

It is not merely a question of how often Firmino passes, but where. This can illustrate how unique he is.

Perhaps Liverpool, as the division’s best team this season, should be in the opposition’s half more than most, but Firmino averages 2.99 successful passes in the final third every 90 minutes.

It means he is 45 per cent better than anyone else, with Harry Kane next on 2.1. David McGoldrick ranks third and the Ireland international has one unfortunate common denominator with Firmino – a lack of home goals, compounded by his inability to score away – the Sheffield United man figures highly on some of the same lists.

Firmino does not just stand out in the context of the Premier League.

Transplant his statistics to another league and it shows how hard he would be to replace if he left Liverpool.

No Bundesliga forward averages as many passes into the final third or as many ball recoveries that lead to a shot. No La Liga or Serie A striker wins the ball back to set up a chance as often. Only one La Liga striker completes more passes in the final third of the pitch. And he is Lionel Messi.