Roberto Firmino has become another Klopp success story

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The Brazilian has been a star player for Liverpool this season.

A sign of a good manager is not purely based on results but the ability to make individual players better.

Jurgen Klopp has been at Liverpool just over a year, but the number of success stories in the squad is growing at a rapid rate. Dejan Lovren, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana and Philippe Coutinho were all talented players before the Germans’ arrival, but it was their level of consistency that was letting them down. It was not out of the question to think that all four players were at a crossroads at the club.

This season has since each player rise to the challenge and play with the confidence instilled into them by their manager.

Lovren emphasised that point on Saturday when he made a poor clearance which cost the team a goal. Rather than dwell on the mistake and let it affect his game has as he has been known to do in the past, a few minutes later Lovren went down the other end and scored a goal of his own which was set up by Coutinho.

Henderson now looks every bit of a leader and his predecessor in the role would have given a nod of approval to his inch perfect through ball to the Brazilian Roberto Firmino, who delightfully chipped over Palace goalkeeper Steve Mandanda to seal a hard fought victory.

Firmino is a another player who has truly found his feet after a underwhelming first few months at his new club. Former Reds manager Brendan Rodgers bought Firmino from German club Hoffenheim for £29 million, but he seemed to struggle with the pace of the league and did not score a goal until his 14th appearance for the club, a emphatic 4-1 win at Manchester City in November last year.

Since that moment the Brazilian has found his feet at the club and has scored another 16 goals including five in 11 games this season.

Klopp has given him the responsibility to make the main striker role his own even though it is more of a “false nine” position in Liverpool’s set-up.

Other than his goal-scoring form, one other reason Klopp likes Firmino in the role is his tremendous work ethic, fighting to win back possession for the side on a regular basis. The German demands this from his players and it could be a factor why Daniel Sturridge cannot get a look in at the moment.

Alberto Moreno played one of his more impressive games for the club on Saturday after getting a call to replace the ill James Milner. Although it was only one game, it will be fascinating to see whether the much maligned Spaniard can be Klopp’s latest success story. While that may seem unlikely to many, going by recent history you certainly would not rule it out.