Jamie Carragher has shared that he was ‘very surprised’ that Divock Origi started Liverpool’s Champions League showdown with AC Milan on Wednesday night, as he told Paramount+ on CBS Sports (15/09/21 at 7:50 pm).
Liverpool recorded a tasty and all-action 3-2 win over their old foes at Anfield, with Origi supplying an assist and playing just over an hour for his side in their Champions League opener.
Jurgen Klopp tends to do this with Origi where he would, now and again, start a game out of the blue, and he opted to hand him that opportunity yesterday.
But before Carragher could see the 26-year-old in action, he admitted that he didn’t expect to see Origi in the starting XI and how he was ‘trending on Twitter’ when the teamsheets were read out.
“Very surprised that he is playing,” said Carragher. “I think every Liverpool supporter is. He is trending on Twitter. Whenever you are trending on Twitter, it’s never a good sign.
“I was trending after that Soccer Aid game. It’s not a good sign. No, but it’s a big surprise. A huge surprise.
“But he’s always been a real asset from the bench. The last couple of years, he just hasn’t shown anything, that’s where the surprise comes from. He scored in the Champions League final, so you can’t complain too much when he is in the XI in the Champions League.
“But it is a big surprise given that he hasn’t started a game at Anfield since January.”
Well, Origi passed the test yesterday and he can hold his head up high in regards to the performance he put up.
Even though he hasn’t played a single minute this season, as the game wore on, he became more powerful and threatening in the final third.
His assist was one Roberto Firmino would be proud of because his quick-thinking, soft touch and lovely dink over the Milan defence put Mohamed Salah through on goal, who at the time, put the Reds level at 2-2.
It was a crucial moment during the game because Klopp’s side scored minutes after the restart and would eventually find the winner through Jordan Henderson, who channelled his inner Steven Gerrard.
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