Name: Divock Origi
Born: April 18, 1995, in Ostend, Belgium
Position: Striker
Pro club: Lille
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Why is he in the news?
At just 19, Origi is having a breakout World Cup campaign for Belgium. Added to the squad only after an injury knocked Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke off the roster, Origi has come off the bench to play 95 minutes in Belgium’s first three games, scoring on a rocket in the 88th minute to help his country beat Russia 1–0.
Ever since that game winner, rumours have abounded about just which English Premier League team is going to snap Origi up via transfer from his Ligue 1 club, Lille. Liverpool is apparently in the lead, but Tottenham is also rumoured to have interest. If the Reds succeed in acquiring Origi, he could become a cornerstone of the Luis Suarez contingency plan after FIFA banned the Uruguayan forward for four months for biting Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini.
He’s special because
Yes, he’s good and young. But we’re talking about him largely because he rose to the very large occasion coming off the bench against Russia in a game where the bulk of his teammates were flat. Were it not for his floating to the perfect spot in the box and nailing the one-timer, Belgium could’ve been in a much different position heading into game three of the round robin.
Club career
Origi appeared in 30 games in his first full season with Lille in 2013–14, scoring five goals and adding one assist. He averaged just under 43 minutes per game, mainly coming off the bench.
International career
If you’ve been watching the World Cup, you’ve pretty much seen all of it. His three World Cup games (versus Algeria, Russia and South Korea) mark his only senior-team experience beyond 45 minutes combined in two friendlies against Luxembourg and Sweden in late May and early June, respectively. Prior to that he’d made 32 appearances for Belgium’s U21, U19, U17, U16 and U15 squads, scoring 10 goals in 19 games for the U19 team.
His most famous moment
More like “only” famous moment (even some members of the Belgian team hadn’t heard of Origi before his call-up in May). Still, it’s pretty hard to beat breaking a nil-nil tie in the 88th minute of a World Cup game that eventually pushes your nation to the knockout round. At 19, no less.
Here’s an interesting fact
Origi is the son of Mike Origi, a former Kenyan national team member. He also played professionally between 1984 and 2006, largely in Belgium. His Racing Genk team won the Belgian Pro League in 1998–99.
He said it
“As a little boy I always dreamed of playing in the Premier League. But I’m still young and now I’m in an important tournament so I’m trying to focus on the team. Then my entourage will see with Lille what I will do.”
What they’re saying about him
“He’s got excellent technique, he’s quick, he’s very strong in the duel and he can make a good entrance at any moment during a game.” – Marc Wilmots, Belgium manager