Vfl Wolfsburg has begun negotiations with Liverpool over the possible transfer of Belgian striker Divock Origi. The 22-year-old is currently on loan at the Volkswagen Arena and it is believed that the Bundesliga club is trying to make his move permanent following his impressive performances in the top tier of German football this season. The initial loan deal agreed by the two clubs does not include any clause to make the switch permanent, yet the Wolves of Germany are hopeful that a deal can be negotiated for a permanent transfer to take place at the end of the season.
The Belgian international’s current contract with the Reds is set to expire in the summer of 2019. Hence, 2018 will be the Merseysiders’ last opportunity to cash in on the player who has failed to impress at Anfield. Origi has found the back of the net 4 times and made one assist in 15 Bundesliga appearances so far. Following their opening round of talks with Liverpool’ sporting director Michael Edwards, Vfl Wolfsburg sporting director Olaf Rebbe said,
“The people at Liverpool are merchants, no Samaritans,”
“We will still try to exhaust our possibilities, alongside the player who feels well here.”
Origi is set to play in a more central role for Vfl Wolfsburg in the second half of the season after the departure of Mario Gomez who left the club to ply his trade at Stuttgart. He will now be expected to regularly score goals for the Bundesliga club following their mediocre start to the campaign which sees them sit 12th in the Bundesliga standings, just four points above the relegation zone.
Meanwhile, Liverpool are flying at the moment as far as attacking is concerned. They have scored the second most goals in the Premier League and with the lethal front three of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah in such a rich vein of form, there seems to be no need for a striker of Divock Origi’s qualities. So it looks like a permanent move for the forward to the Bundesliga will benefit all parties as the Reds look to cash in on their prized asset while VFL Wolfsburg can provide the striker with an ideal platform to develop and fulfil his potential to boost his chances of making it to the Belgian squad for the World Cup.
It remains to be seen what lies ahead in the immediate future of Divock Origi on a year which also features the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
