Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has hailed the impact of Divock Origi over the past week.
His header against Newcastle last Saturday night kept Liverpool in the title race and he surpassed that as a starter in midweek by scoring twice in the incredible 4-0 win against Barcelona, including the decisive winner in a 4-3 aggregate win.
“When he was not playing or after being sub for so long, maybe people thought I didn’t like the player that much, but that’s not right. It was just difficult to come into a team that had Salah, Mane and Firmino,” explained Klopp.
“In my first year I hadn’t forgot how good he was until Funes Mori kicked him, he came back too early and then everyone was asking ‘What is wrong with Divock Origi‘. But you can not be the same player when you have a bit of pain in each step.
“But then showing up the way he did, in Divock Origi week. Even without the other night (against Barcelona), the header at Newcastle was crazy. And those two goals against Barcelona!
“What Trent Alexander-Arnold did was genius (crossing for Origi’s winner), one of the most genius moments I will ever see in football as long as I am alive. But it was still not an easy ball, it was the opposite of an easy ball.
“It was bouncing and nine times out of ten, the ball would end up in the stand. This one ended up in the net – a brilliant goal from Divock. It shows what confidence can do and how important it was in this moment. He is really back on the landscape.”
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