Liverpool supporters have made their feelings clear after it emerged that Jurgen Klopp will not stand in Divock Origi's way if the striker wants to leave Anfield this summer.
Origi has once again been given limited minutes in his seventh season with the Reds, but further cemented his cult hero status with a crucial goal in the Merseyside derby on Sunday. The 27-year-old's immediate impact from the bench set up Andy Robertson's opener before Origi grabbed one for himself shortly after and sealed the vital three points.
Despite his decisive intervention over the weekend, Klopp left his super substitute on the bench for the visit of Villarreal for a Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday. Reports suggest that the Liverpool manager would be understanding if Origi decided to depart at the end of the campaign for regular first-team opportunities, with AC Milan interested in securing his signature. Reds fans, however, chanted his name midway through the first half of Wednesday's semi-final in a show of love for the Belgian.
Klopp has often hinted that the Origi's departure is a possibility, constantly labelling him a club legend after a string of goals as a substitute during his tenure. "We will never miss a player like him because if he leaves, he will explode wherever he goes," the German told Sky Sports after Sunday's 2-0 win against Everton.
"He is a world-class striker, he is a legend and will stay a legend forever. He doesn't always make the squad which is ridiculous, but he is there when we need him every time. He was involved in both games; everything that we did in the second half, without Divock, wouldn't have happened.
"The group lives because of the boys that don't always play, they are the strongest players ever; [Alex] Oxlade-Chamberlain, [Harvey] Elliott, [Takumi] Minamino, even Rhys Williams. They are in great shape, but the way they behave is why we do these kind of things."
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Klopp later added in his press conference: "He is a legend on and off the pitch. He is a fantastic footballer for me, and I know it sounds ridiculous as I don’t line him up often. He is a world-class striker, he is our best finisher definitely. He always was and everybody would say the same when you see him do these kind of things in training.
"Then, you see the quality of the squad and other players and it’s really hard I imagine [for him]. Other players were not in the squad but in really good shape, I have really hard decisions to make because the boys all want to contribute and are responsible for the situation we are in. Everybody loves Div and rightly so. He was again very decisive. I'm very, very happy for him."
