Aston Villa are reportedly interested in signing Belgian forward Divock Origi from Liverpool, who could be sold by the Premier League champions this summer.
According to a report from The Sun, Liverpool striker Divock Origi has emerged as a potential transfer target for Aston Villa in the ongoing transfer window.
The 28-year-old joined Liverpool from Lille in 2014, but moved to Anfield for good a year later, after spending a season on loan at the French outfit. However, he wasn’t able able to establish himself as a regular at the club and had another loan stint at VfL Wolfsburg in 2017/18.
Origi attained cult status among the Kop for his contributions in the 2018/19 campaign, as he chipped in with several clutch goals including in the semi-finals and final of the UEFA Champions League. On the back of those exploits, the Belgian international was handed a new contract as well.
However, he wasn’t able to repeat the same heroics in the recently concluded campaign. He may have featured 42 times in all competitions in 2019/20, but only 14 of those came from the start. He managed a return of just six goals and four assists in the process.
With the 28-year-old firmly behind the first-choice attacking trident of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, the report states that Liverpool could consider selling him in order to generate funds to enable Jurgen Klopp to sign his targets. And, Aston Villa have emerged as a potential destination for Origi ahead of next season.
The Villans hung onto their Premier League status by the slimmest of margins and will be gunning to improve their fortunes in the upcoming campaign. The centre-forward slot was a problematic one for Dean Smith & co. with both Keinan Davis and Mbwana Samatta unable to find the back of the net on a consistent basis following Wesley’s season-ending knee injury in January.
Indeed, midfielder Jack Grealish finished as their top scorer for the season. So, it would make sense for Villa to target a striker in the ongoing window. And, given Origi’s experience in England and his current bit-part role at Anfield, the Belgian is a viable target for them.
The Liverpool forward himself could be open to a move as he will be aware that regular playing time will be needed for him to be selected in Belgium’s UEFA European Championship squad for next year. Origi still has four years left on his current contract with the English champions. It remains to be seen if he remains a Red come next season.
