I remember very well the day that it was announced Origi was going to the World Cup in Brazil. A surprise inclusion in Mark Wilmots' squad. Not many people in Belgium knew who he was or where he actually played. At that point the 19 year old Origi had played about 20 games and scored a handful of goals for Lille in the Ligue 1. As a winger out on the left, the position he also played in the youth teams at KRC Genk. Not as a striker. Then that moment, he comes on against Russia, as a striker, and scores the 1-0. Next thing you know we're in for him, sign him up for 10 million and he was the next big thing.
We then loaned him out back to Lille, a team that had lost their star players and all the pressure was on Origi's shoulders to carry that team. It was Wilmots who thought he could be a striker and that idea has been in Origi's head too since that season. The thing is, he had never played as a striker before. He was a winger, a good one. He had pace, skill, good dribbles and a sweet right foot. People referring to the fact that he was voted in the 'worst team of France' after that season, have to take into account the circumstances in which that happened. He was on loan at a club he was going to leave at the end of the season, he had to carry that team as a young lad and he was playing in a position that he wasn't used to playing in. The fans started getting on his back and it all went downhill very quickly. They judged him as a soon to be Liverpool player, not as a young lad in only his 2nd season at the top level.
After that he developed really well under Klopp and had a brilliant few months in our Europa League campaign. These months quickly came to and end when he suffered a horrific injury by that c**t Funes Mori in the derby. When he was finally given an extended run back in the starting eleven last season. He might have looked a bit out of place. You do have to ask yourself why though. He looked good the season before that in a fit team, with quality and fit players around him. When he came back into the starting eleven last season, we were without (correct me if I'm wrong, I might be wrong here) Mane, Coutinho and Lallana for very big parts of that run. Firmino was dead on his feet after having played pretty much every single minute. He was put in a team devoid of ideas, of creativity. Yet he still managed to score 5 or 6 consecutive games and helped us win some very important points. Surely he deserves more credit for that than just saying he looked out of place in a team that didn't look anything like the team that ended the season before and started that season?
I agree he hasn't been as good as he can be, but to me that's down to a lack of confidence. He'll never play the role as well as Firmino does, but if you put him in the current team, I guarantee you he will look a lot better again, similar to how he was playing in these months two seasons ago. At this moment, I prefer Solanke over Origi, but that's because Solanke is a natural striker. He has the instincts of a striker, the movement of a striker, clinical in front of goal, strong in the air and he uses his body well.
These are all things Origi didn't really learn when he was playing as a winger when he was younger and it's something that's very hard to master when you're older. The fact that he takes too many touches, runs too much with the ball etc., it's all because he was a winger and in my opinion, that's still his best position. He has pace, skill, flair, a good dribble and a sweet right foot to cut in on. He has scored a few beauties for us already playing there.
These are some of his highlights and goals when he played for Lille:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mM55i3Ye60MHe played both as a right and left winger. That's what he is and that's what he does best. He did for Lille then what Mane and Salah do for us now, which is why I think he'd be a good stand in for Mane. He's a quality player and if he has to be loaned out to regain some of his confidence, maybe it's for the best, but I wouldn't write him off just yet.