Liverpool’s new forward Diogo Jota will be a big influencing in helping Roberto Firmino find his confidence again, says club legend John Aldridge.
The Portuguese goal-hunter arrived at Anfield last Saturday in a £45m move from Wolves, where he scored 62 goals in three seasons.
With Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane getting 57 goals last season, the 23-year-old is seen as competition from the bench.
Some may be eyeing him up for the Brazilian’s place, who took 16 months to score a home goal before netting against Chelsea in the trophy-lifting game last July.
But Aldridge, who scored 63 goals in four seasons at Anfield, believes it will help bring more out of the Red’s No.9.
Writing in the Liverpool Echo, the former forward said: “Our striking options are looking really good now.
“Mo Salah showed on the opening weekend [against Leeds United] he’s as hungry as ever and Sadio Mane displayed what he’s all about again at Chelsea.
“I saw Jamie Carragher has compared him to the great John Barnes and I can certainly see where he’s coming from.
“Bobby Firmino did really well to create the first goal on Sunday [against Chelsea] and, even though he’s still not quite at his best and looks a bit low on confidence, he came to life in the second half around the edge of the box with his little touches and flicks.
“That second 45 [minutes] at Chelsea will do him good, as I believe will the arrival of Jota because, as I said last week, that knowledge that there is now someone on the bench who could potentially take his place should be a good motivating factor for him to get a few more goals.
“Quality back-up for the strike force is something we’ve talked about Liverpool needing for some time and it’s great to see it in place now.”
Aldridge went on to detail Jota’s style of play as well as where he would fit into Jurgen Klopp’s plans for the season.
He added: “He’s quick, his delivery is very good, he can play in a number of forward positions and he knows where the back of the net is.
“Don’t forget a lot of his appearances for Wolves have come as a substitute so that paints a bit of false picture when it comes to his creative ability.
“It might seem a lot of money to some people but Liverpool fans should trust the manager implicitly because look how many decisions he’s got right.
“If he believes Jota is worth that, with Ki-Jana Hoever going the other way, it could turn out to be a really good deal for Liverpool.”
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