He's rapidly becoming one of Liverpool and the Premier League's brightest stars, and it shows, because Roberto Firmino reportedly has a pretty massive release clause.
The Brazilian is under contract with Liverpool until 2020 after signing from Hoffenheim in a £29m move last summer.
The latest Football Leaks released in Belgian newspaper Le Soir has revealed that prospective bidders will have to fork out a whopping €98m (£82.3m) to trigger negotiations with Liverpool. However, there's a catch.
That prospective bidder can't be Arsenal.
The report in Le Soir states clearly:
Arsenal cannot buy Roberto Firmino for €98m nor for any other higher amount.
#footballeaks in @Lesoir:
✅ Firmino has a €98m clause that can't be triggered by #AFC
✅ Atlético get 250k every time Agüero scores 15 goals. pic.twitter.com/nUbKOICUt9— Kristof Terreur (@HLNinEngeland) December 5, 2016
Arsene Wenger was heavily suggested to be interested in accruing the services of the former Bundesliga standout just last summer, and it would appear Liverpool have stepped in early to prevent Arsenal from pulling similar manoeuvres to those which almost saw Luis Suarez head south for London in 2013.
Wenger famously offered Liverpool £40m and £1 which he believed would trigger the Uruguayan striker release clause three summers ago, with Liverpool instead taking offence to the cheeky bid and closing off all avenues for any potential deal.
It seems, be it to ward Wenger off from similar antics in future, or just as a general, two-fingered salute to a rival, Liverpool have ensured Firmino will not be heading to North London in the near future, with his contract set to take him up to 2020 at Anfield.
