Is Origi proving it’s better to be a small fish in a big pond?

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Divock Origi is, rightfully, considered a legend at Liverpool.

Aside from Mohamed Salah, there is a very strong argument to suggest the Belgian has had a more profound impact – on an individual basis at least – than the rest of the famed front three built by Jurgen Klopp.

Clearly, the fact Origi rarely plays and, therefore, has less of a chance to endure a noticeably prolonged run of bad form helps, although any player across world football would envy his particular highlight reel. What makes the Origi story so interesting is just how unique it is.

This is a striker Klopp has described as “one of the best finishers” he’s ever seen, someone who has proven he can score goals in high-pressure situations and instantly get into the flow of the game no matter how much time he’s had off. The modern Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, if you will.

Still, and while not to cheapen Origi’s legendary contributions, football might soon get to a stage where this kind of thing is really not that unique at all.

The fact that Liverpool, who don’t even have the resources of the two Manchester clubs, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, can afford to have such a player in reserve speaks to just how wide the gap is between the elite and the chasing pack.

Being a back-up at Liverpool is more appealing than leading the line for the likes of Sevilla, Wolverhampton Wanderers or Bayer Leverkusen, who have all tried to buy Origi. The same is true of players such as Mauro Icardi, Julian Draxler, Gareth Bale, Juan Mata and Ross Barkley, albeit none of those have had quite as much impact as the Liverpool star.

That is not to cast any dispersions on their motives. A lazy assumption would be that these players are simply happy with their lot but, frankly, why wouldn’t you want to be involved at a top club?

The footballing calendar is so relentless, it’s not as if they’re likely to be completely ostracised, other than in exceptional circumstances such as Bale at Real Madrid. Even a few appearances in a trophy-winning team is the stuff many footballers dream of. Who on earth could possibly blame them?

Another thing to consider is what this means for other leagues across European football. Even off the back of a global pandemic, the Premier League continues to get richer and richer and we could soon get to a stage where operating as back-up there is considered a better career move than playing for the leading Italian or even Spanish sides, outside of the big two.

That might sound like a Premier League-centric view and perhaps a tad dismissive of the prestige in other divisions. It is not meant to, there is a more than rewarding world of football (and more) beyond the British isles, of course.

However, it’s hard to view the English league as anything other than the place to be at the moment, especially when considering just how desperate Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus have been to stay in the European Super League. They just cannot compete, which is both a reflection on the English product and the problems elsewhere.

The money involved in football will eventually sap the uniqueness of it all. That’s how it works, sadly. Clubs will see the value in keeping a player as good as Origi happy in reserve and, gradually, we will begin to see the pattern emerge once more.

The moments Origi has given Liverpool have been special. The story is brilliant. Such is the nature of modern football, however, it might soon be repackaged and regurgitated elsewhere. The joy.

 


 

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