Roberto Firmino's Liverpool contract reveals a level of saltiness that's not been seen in these parts for quite some time.
What follows is my favorite paragraph of soccer journalism so far in 2016.
And Liverpool appear to have taken retributive action by specifying in Firmino's deal that he can be bought for €98m (£82m) "if the interested club is not Arsenal".
This is just next-level saltiness from Liverpool. Arsenal, in case you don't remember, famously tried to trigger Luis Suarez's ￡40 million buyout clause by bidding one pound extra a few years ago. Liverpool responded by simply ignoring the bid and keeping Suarez, selling him to Barcelona for way more than Arsenal bid a few years later.
That attempt will not be repeated with Arsenal, who either cannot bid on Firmino (likely) or just don't have to meet the buyout clause (very unlikely because lawyers).
Hey, Liverpool fans had to get their famed persecution complex from somewhere, right?
