KEY POINTS

  • Roberto Firmino has termed Philippe Coutinho as "phenomenal"
  • Firmino and Coutinho were also teammates at Liverpool between 2015 and 2018
  • Coutinho moved from Liverpool to Barcelona in 2018

Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino heaped praise on his Brazilian teammate Philippe Coutinho on Tuesday, saying the Barcelona midfielder has "magical powers".

Brazil kickstarted their 2020 World Cup Qualifying campaign with an excellent 5-0 win over Bolivia Saturday, where Coutinho scored the final goal but was involved in the other Brazil goals as well. Out of the five goals, two belonged to Firmino.

Firmino and Coutinho were also teammates at Liverpool FC between 2015 and 2018 before the latter moved to Lionel Messi-led Barcelona during the January transfer window. Coutinho, who was tipped to leave the Catalans this summer, has already begun the 2020-21 season with Messi and Co.

“He’s phenomenal. You simply can’t say that he’s not a magician. He has magical powers. He produces plays that don’t exist, that you couldn’t make up. You always have to watch replays of his plays to understand what he’s done. He’s an unbelievable player. It was a pleasure to play with him at Liverpool, and it’s a pleasure to play with him for the Selecao. I’m a huge fan of his. He’s one of the very best players in the world," Firmino told FIFA.com ahead of Brazil’s clash against Peru.

Philippe Coutinho and Neymar
Philippe Coutinho and Neymar are just two key players who may miss out on the 2018 World Cup semifinals. In this picture, Brazil's Neymar (R) talks with Coutinho during the Russia 2018 World Cup round of 16 football match between Brazil and Mexico at the Samara Arena in Samara, July 2, 2018. BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP/Getty Images

The Liverpool star, in the same interview, also hailed Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) playmaker Neymar, who recorded two assists and completed 109 touches of the ball against Bolivia.

"Another unbelievable player, he was brilliant against Bolivia. He was getting back to mark a lot and he did amazing things with the ball. There are no words to describe Neymar," added the 29-year-old Firmino.

Justifying the faith Firmino has in him, the PSG striker netted a hat-trick to help Brazil clinch a superb 4-2 win over Peru in the World Cup Qualifying game Tuesday. The fourth goal for Brazil was scored by Everton forward Richarlison.

With the three goals against Peru, Neymar went past compatriot Ronaldo in the list of Brazil’s all-time leading goal-scorer. Legendary Pele remains the leader with 77 strikes, ahead of Neymar (64), and Ronaldo (62).

Neymar celebrated the achievement and paid tribute to Fenômeno by imitating the iconic Brazilian No. 9’s trademark finger-wagging celebration while also showing his tongue.

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