Liverpool LEGEND becomes latest Saudi target - Romano

Tom Weber

• Updated: 4 Jul 2023 15:47 BST
• 4 min read

Roberto Firmino is the latest high-profile footballer to be targeted by a Saudi Arabian club, according to Fabrizio Romano.

The Brazilian star has enjoyed an illustrious career with Liverpool, winning the Champions League and playing a crucial role in ending their 30-year Premier League title drought.

Everything must come to an end eventually, however, and with Sadio Mane already having left last season, Firmino is the second member of that legendary front three that used to terrorise Europe to depart. His contract with Jurgen Klopp's side is expiring this summer and won't be extended.

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This means that Firmino is free to choose his next employer. Unsurprisingly given his talents, he has been the subject of intense links to some big European clubs, chiefly Real Madrid, but his future may lie in Asia.

Al-Ahli want Firmino

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, the 31-year-old is being courted by Saudi side Al-Ahli. One of the four Pro League giants now owned by the country's Public Investment Fund, Al-Ahli are historically one of the biggest teams in Saudi Arabia, but their recent history hasn't been quite as illustrious.

This founding member of the Pro League was relegated for the first time in 2021/22, though they bounced straight back last season. Now, they are trying to get back on their perch, wanting to compete with champions Al-Ittihad, who have already signed Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante, Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr and Asian Champions League finalists Al-Hilal, who just announced the arrivals of Ruben Neves and Kalidou Koulibaly.

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Romano claims that negotiations between Al-Ahli and Firmino are 'ongoing,' but that the player has not yet made a final decision on his future. The Saudi club are, however, already scheduling a medical in case the Brazilian assents to their offer, which is surely a lucrative one indeed given the money being flushed into the Saudi game at the moment.