The 24-year-old has been the Reds' standout performer this year and his mix of flair, function and fight has complemented the German manager's "full-throttle" revolution
In Melwood's reception area, Roberto Firmino rolls his right hand to make a fist and scrunches his eyes as he sits across a wooden wall, inscribed with Bill Shankly's simple yet imposing words: 'We are Liverpool.'
The Brazilian is detailing the aggressive edge of his game, a trait admired by his manager, Jurgen Klopp, and one that speaks to the immortal phrase in white, bold letters opposite him. Tackles, clearances and interceptions are as significant to the tattooed forward as his figures in attack. In this city, at this club, those who sweat for the shirt are lionised.
"My job is to help the team and so I love retrieving the ball as much as scoring or playing the final pass for a goal," Firmino tells Goal ahead of the battle against Manchester United in the second leg of the Europa League at Old Trafford.
"Maybe people don't celebrate winning the ball back like [they do] a goal but I really enjoy it. These are all important things and it's important for me to do them all for the team."
Firmino's balance of flair, function and fight was developed in his homeland, where he was exposed to contrasting styles from an early age. He was born in Maceio, a north-east city with unspoilt beaches but an alarmingly high murder rate.
Registered to Clube de Regatas Brasil, he was encouraged to play the expressive, poetic football for which his country is famed, before a failed trial at Sao Paulo led him to Figueirense in the south at 17. There, the more aggressive, tireless Uruguayan and Argentine influence was dominant. Firmino was comfortable fusing both approaches and, soon after he turned 19, Hoffenheim took him from Brazil's second division to the German Bundesliga.
In colder conditions than he ever anticipated and in a more formidable league, the son of a street hawker added tactical discipline and mental steel to his armoury.
Now on Merseyside aged 24, he is a "complete offensive player", as Klopp detailed, who can operate across the forward line while employing a defensive bite. He spent his formative years as a ball-playing destroyer and was stationed everywhere on the pitch apart from the back line. He credits his background for his multi-functionality. "It has helped me," says Firmino. "With all the mix of styles and players, cities and clubs, I have learned a lot.
"You play in different situations and conditions and you have to come up with new solutions for the problems. It has made me a more rounded player, who can handle different tactics and positions."
For someone so skilled in sidestepping difficulties, from the gang violence of his birthplace to selling coconuts to help cater for his family and moving away from home at 16 to chase a better life while knowing his mother was emotionally torn by the distance between them, it was inevitable that Firmino would backheel the uncertainties that characterised the start of his Liverpool career.
Within the walls of this training complex, there was no doubt that the talent uncovered by a dentist would display value for his transfer fee from Hoffenheim, which will rise to £29 million.
It was understood that he would need time to bed in and cope with playing for a global giant after quietly being allowed to develop in the German village town, with a population of just over 3000 people. "I'm accustomed to pressure. It's what we as players live. If you don't want pressure, then football is not for you," he says of the increased expectation that comes at Liverpool.
"The first few months here were difficult as everything is different on and off the pitch. You have to start learning from scratch and, with time, it all becomes easier to understand. I feel I have adapted well now and will get much better."
Brendan Rodgers's risk-averse approach at the start of the season saw Firmino's minutes limited. In the third game of the campaign against Arsenal, he was afforded just over an hour on the pitch and was one of the best players on it. Then came consecutive hammerings against West Ham and Manchester United, before a back injury against Carlisle in the League Cup stifled the Brazilian's progress again.
In October, Liverpool made a sizeable appointment that would have a sizeable influence on Firmino. Rodgers was out, Klopp was in and the player was "very, very happy" when the 48-year-old was pictured signing his deal at Hope Street Hotel.
He explains: "I played against his team many times, knew what he expected of his players and how he treated them. In Germany, he is huge and it was exciting to know I'd get the chance to work with him and not against him any more.
"With his work ethic and mentality, he is perfect for us and we can all feel the changes he has made in this short time. The team has more belief and confidence now. The more we have the chance to do what he wants from us, the better we will get. I think that is starting to show in the results.
"He's an incredible person and an amazing manager. He's been very successful, especially with Dortmund, and working with him every day is like a new lesson; he teaches us a lot! I'm looking forward to gaining even more from him and becoming a winner with him."
Firmino has gone from being labelled Liverpool's top flop this season to their top scorer. His numbers, especially in the Premier League, are astounding.
"The harder I work, the luckier I get," he says. "There is nothing that comes without working for it.
"Every day I give all I have with the team in training and what people are seeing now is the result of that."
This is not just a stock answer that he has been taught to deliver. The backroom team at Melwood marvel at how he seems to be able to play the game in the future and continuously seeks out ways to sharpen his qualities.
He trains hard and draws applause during the almost daily mini-games on Melwood's pitches. It's incredibly difficult to lift the ball off him but he casually robs his opponents at the complex as he does in matches and sparks the quick transition from defence to attack.
Firmino particularly enjoys his chemistry with fellow Brazilian Philippe Coutinho, who gave him a window into life at Liverpool before he joined, as well as the industrious Adam Lallana.
"They are two excellent players," he says. "We think the same and, the more time we spend together in training, the better we are getting at understanding each other.
"We all want to receive the ball and we all want to win the ball back, so we work well together to help do these things."
The influential trident are hoping to replicate at Old Trafford on Thursday night the authoritative performance that they helped to deliver against United in the first leg last week.
"We were more intense," Firmino says of their encounter at Anfield. "We were quicker and knew what we needed to do when we had the ball and when we didn't.
"It could have been by more goals but we were happy with our performance and look forward to working hard again on Thursday."
Firmino is now as settled off the pitch as he is on it and so are his family, who are his axis. "It's a beautiful city with friendly people and I'm at a special club," he says of Liverpool. "They love it here just as much as I do."
The skin around his eyes wrinkle as he smiles widely while talking about those closest to him and the new family he has found on Merseyside. His dentist-turned-agent, Marcelo Portela, did a stellar job with both Firmino's teeth and highlighting his talents.
- Goal