Rio Ferdinand likens Divock Origi to two Manchester United cult heroes

Ferdinand has hailed Origi after an extraordinary week for the star

Origi is Liverpool’s last minute hero (Getty Images)

Rio Ferdinand has compared Divock Origi to two Manchester United heroes after a sensational week for the Liverpool star.

Origi scored a last-minute winner against Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday and scored the winning goal against AC Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday. The victory meant Liverpool became the first English club to win every one of their Champions League group matches.

Ex-United defender Ferdinand hailed Origi as “integral” despite him spending most of his time at the Reds as a substitute.

“I’ve played with players that have done what he does coming off the bench, the Chicharitos [Hernandez], the Ole Gunnar Solskjaers,” Ferdinand told Liverpool Echo.

“The appreciation for them within the squad, all the players love players like that because you need them – they’re so integral if you’re going to win multiple competitions. You need people to be able to come off the bench and have an impact.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp will need Origi to continue his good form as Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane head off with international duty next month for the African Cup of Nations.

Klopp heaped praised his team’s performance, saying: “We made eight changes. Alisson is a goalie, so he could play and wanted to play desperately.

“The same for Sadio and Mo. The game they played tonight is absolutely outstanding. The quality they have and the physicality they bring in a game like this, how much they help defensively.

“It’s a mix of fresh legs and then quality as well, and it was a really good mix tonight.”