West Ham suffer blow in the race to sign Divock Origi
West Ham are looking increasingly likely to miss out on the free transfer of Liverpool striker Divock Origi who is close to reaching an agreement with AC Milan, reports The Daily Mail.
Liverpool have an option to extend Origi’s contract if he makes a certain amount of starts, but that looks unlikely as he has only made five substitute appearances in the Premier League this season.
Earlier this month, TeamTalk reported that the Hammers and Newcastle want him to keep the Belgian in the Premier League, but he looks set to move to Italy in the summer.
Origi has been at Anfield since 2014 but he has never managed to nail down a first-team spot. However, he has made some valuable contributions to Liverpool’s success in recent years, having scored two crucial goals against Barcelona and another one in the final against Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League.
Jurgen Klopp hailed him as a club “legend”, but he cannot provide him enough game time in the star-studded Liverpool set-up (The Guardian).
It remains a big surprise that David Moyes didn’t move for the 26-year-old striker when he only had Michail Antonio in the squad for the whole season.
Origi is an experienced Premier League forward who is known for his instinctive finishes. After the Reds signed Luiz Diaz from Porto in January, it became very clear that Origi’s future at Anfield is as good as over.
The Hammers probably are looking to other players like Darwin Nunez, but given Origi’s age, experience and quality, he would have been a smart addition.
It seems a missed opportunity for the Hammers.
In other West Ham news, David Moyes warns the owners ahead of the summer transfer window.
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