17 Jul 2014

Boss Confirms: LFC deal for 'exciting' £10m star is dead. Sign £8m striker instead?

Last week, Liverpool reportedly agreed a deal to sign Lille striker Divock Origi, but despite everything seemingly being in place, the deal now appears to have collapsed.

A £10m deal was expected to be completed this week, but according to Lille Coach Rene Girard, Origi - recently described by Simon Mignolet as an exciting player - is not going anywhere.

When asked about the Liverpool deal last night, he told reporters:

"It is true that there are offers from all over Europe, [but] Divock Origi will be here [at Lille] this season”

In a recent column for the Telegraph, Anfield legend Alan Hansen subtly warned LFC against signing Origi. He noted:

"Origi has a long way to go before being the finished article. He has genuine pace, but he is also raw and displayed some wayward finishing against the Americans. He is young and has potential, but you cannot ignore his rawness".

To be honest, I'm glad this deal is not going through. Liverpool don't need Origi, and spending £10m on a 19-year old who'll then go back on loan for a year is, in my view, a waste of money.

Yes, there's the age-old argument that Origi may 'come good' at some undetermined point in the future, but where's the fire? He's only 19, and it makes sense to see how he performs over the next year before splashing the cash.

His goal rate to-date (7 goals in 45 games) is not prolific enough for the current level of ridiculous hype, most of which seems to have arisen as a result of his performances in the World Cup, which, to be honest, were not as impressive as the media suggests.

If Liverpool are going to spend £10m on a striker, why not sign Loic Remy instead?

* Experienced, Premier League proven international.
* No settling-in time required.
* A 'capable starter' (as per Rodgers' criteria for transfers)
* can go straight into the first-team.
* Will immediately improve the squad.

Remy has an £8m buyout clause in his contract, which makes him *cheaper* than Origi. Surely, it's a no-brainer?

Author:


25 comments:

  1. I don't think I would move Sturridge wide to accommodate but I would play Bony in games where teams are parking the bus or bring him on for end of games. Basically horses for courses and rotation.


    Would you move Sturridge wide to accommodate Lukaku? I agree he has qualities but I just don't see him in the Drog/Ibre category yet. Like I say though he is only 21 so could quite possibly get to that stage. Personally I don't think he is currently (or not on last seasons form) better than Bony at this time. I tend to want to watch teams who play a bot and watched a decent amount of Swansea and Everton last season and didn't see a great deal between the two lads. Lukaku is maybe a touch better on the ball like.


    In the end I would prefer Lukaku as his age is a huge benefit but I fear it's a non starter anyway.

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  2. Pretty much what I would have said.

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  3. Lukaku is not better than Sturridge and also do not see how he will fit in unless he is willing to play second fiddle to Sturridge especially if Rodgers mostly goes with a 4-3-3 which is looking likely with the signings he has made so far.

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  4. don't normally agree with jaimie, and some points in this article I disagree with slightly too, but totally agree with not spending £10M only to loan him back for a year. As a plan for a young player who'll cost £1-2M tops it isn't a bad idea, nor is it a bad idea if you are owned by a sugar daddy, but our squad is in need of strengthening with quality right now (need to maintain top 4 and its not a foregone conclusion by any means), so to pay such a substantial fee (for us), and not get any immediate reward would be a little wasteful. I actually wouldn't mind origi if we were to keep him as soon as we signed him on

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  5. Lukaku wouldn't be an initial starter for me but there is a lot of potential there plus he is a proven goalscorer in the PL. I'm more 50/50 now than since we started this discussion but Lukaku would probably still edge it for me.


    Sturridge has really proven himself to be top quality so it's too difficult and not worth reworking the team. It's Suarez who ended up out wide so I guess Lukaku/Bony wouldn't do much better. I think in that case Lambert will suffice.

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  6. I started edging more towards Lukaku rather than Bony. That is how you know you have had a good discussion when both people have to concede a little.

    With his age the potential is remarkable and I hope he plays for a team more like us and Everton rather than Chelsea and he has the physical aspects but a team that promotes the technical aspects could make a top top player out of him.

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  7. I'm not one to name players very often so it was strange for me. I'm actually hoping Borini comes good, there will be lots of cash saved there if that's the case. I'd rather not sign anybody but if we did, Lukaku should be the minimum quality.


    Anyways, cheers, it's 1am and I'm off :)

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  8. i prefer Bony more than Lukaku because of his work rate and attitude in game

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  9. vela krkic no ty

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  10. Actually this is no different than what Marc Coucke said a few weeks ago. The news in Belgium is still that he will stay at Lille on loanm but is very close to signing for us. Just as it has been.

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  11. not all these choices will be everyones top draw prospects but both came high enough in the ratings 2013/14 and are young enought to still get better

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  12. Perrin, Hummels, Rojo and Rodriguez were some of the highest rated defenders in their respective leagues last season (Sqwuaka) hence I included them in my list - also all of them are young enough to be moulded i.e. the Liverpool way.

    I would defend my choices and say they are some of the greatest talent in the pool not sure what Ben Davies has got other than being 21 and having PL experience I would still add him but think we should get in world class & young.

    Rodgers will spend more and he will pick young targets but it will be, buy to improve - keep them at their peak then sell at a profit at around 27+ years old - seems to be the way, this always has been the way since the boot room days. We are great at uncovering talent and turning that raw material into world beating ability.

    Everytime we lose a player in their peak we tend to replace and grow someone to their best in the above scenario. TBH I'm not overly concerned with who we're being linked with right now, I'm sure that BR and the board have already got the scouts working hard on the best mix of pass and move Liverpool grooves for the future. YNWA

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  13. I think we'll have the same problem with Bony

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  14. Thank you, someone with a bit of sense who realises that just because other clubs have signed these players for that money doesn't mean we could have. Fans need to be realistic about where we are

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  15. I really don't like Loic Remy as a player. His movement is elementary, I think he must be frustrating to play behind, and his finishing seems limited to me. I'd rather a promising player came in with athleticism and flair whose movement and teamplay could be improved and developed.

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  16. Isn't it true that the deal would have sent him back on loan to Lille anyway... therefore, he would be staying at Lille, meaning that the guy's quote could be factual and could mean that Origi is still going to be a LFC player.


    Don't get me wrong, I agree with JK on this one. I'd rather invest the money elsewhere for an immediate return. Just pointing out that the quote doesn't make the issue dead.

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  17. Everything

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  18. Remy for me, although I don't mind signing Origi to develope him as I think he'll come good in the future.

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  19. Simon Joseph Lau3:45 am, July 18, 2014

    I agree with the Remy call. Fast, strong and a great finisher. Great complement to our ridiculous collection of playmaking forwards.

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  20. Jamie, why did you delete my last comment? It wasn't abusive, personal or offensive. I suggested that the article was lazy as there was no new information and you were speculating using information which in my opinion offered nothing new to the story. Indeed even the Liverpool Echo today, which is as close to Liverpool as any other newspaper, thinks the Origi deal could still be on, with the player being loaned back to the French club. In the interest of fairness and encouraging proper debate please re-add my previous comment. Thanks.

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  21. and then jamie in a few years buy him for 30m like what happened before:

    Jackson Martinez - then value: 7m -Now value: 30m
    Wilf Bony- Then value:12m - Now value: 20m

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  22. You wont get much joy if you look at figures like that.. Even though Lallan was a bit pricey, he did want to come to Liverpool, there is nothing to suggest Kroos would have been equally eager to join Liverpool given his first choice was said to be doubling his wages and staying at Bayern Munchen. When that failed to materialise and he left for the worlds most decorated footbal club. Sanchez chose Arsenal ahead of Liverpool just like Mkhitaryn, Willian and Salah chose other clubs.


    Liverpool has just got back into champs league and are a bit of a risk for top players who prefer the guarantee of champs league football at the clubs who offer that more often than Liverpool at this point in time. Even City struggle to attract stars until they were more established.


    If Liverpool finish in the top 4 again this season then I am sure the stars the fans crave would be more amenable to linking up with us but at this point we shop at saints and Swansea before we get to shop at the high end. We also have to pay more to persuade clubs that see us direct rivals to sell to us..


    As passionate fans and our club's decorated history we may see ourselves as a top club but after the last 5 years, the likes of Saints and Swansea had a reason to believe they were fighting for league position with us hence we were their direct rivals.


    Lovren may have needed to be more diplomatic but ultimately its players like wanting to join us in the future and showing clear preference for us who can help bring down prices we have to pay.


    Rakitic wanted to join Barca but Barca had all but confirmed they would sign Reus so it may have been in Rakitic's interests to agitate for Barca and therefore handicap how much Sevilla could get for him in much the same manner Suarez agitated for Barca and limited any scope for an auction that may have netted liverpool more had the likes of PSG had any realistic chance of signing him.

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  23. White bits,

    I agree with you on Hummels, Reus and Ricardo Rodriguez. I don't like Cavani. I just BR closes on some of the names you, Twist and I are praying for. We can't let our competitors get significantly stronger. We have promising kids but quality depth is needed not to mention a 20 goal producer.

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  24. Cheers roncalifornia I hope so too :)

    I think Remy will come good as will Sturrdge, don't forget Suarez was not a 30 goal hitman prior to joining us, we will get the full potential from the sqaud but do need at least 1 or 2 marquee signings to lift us all.

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