Suarez fan Origi relishing chance to face his idol

Their Liverpool careers may not have overlapped but Reds striker Divock Origi admits Luis Suarez is one of the reasons why he has made a living in the Premier League.

Liverpool will line up against a star-studded Barcelona side at Wembley today, with Suarez facing his old employers for the first time since his blockbuster £65million move to the Nou Camp two years ago.

Origi has some way to go before mirroring Suarez’s impact at Anfield – the Uruguyan scored 82 goals in 133 games – but won Jurgen Klopp’s favour at the back-end of last season as his first-choice forward.

(Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

And though Suarez has served as an inspiration, the 21-year-old will not be overawed by confronting his idol on the pitch.

“He made a great impact here,” said Origi, who found the net six times in 15 Premier League appearances last season.

“I used to watch him play a lot. I think he is a very intelligent player, a very big player and I think his mental strength is one of the biggest aspects of his game.

“He’s a winner, he meant a lot to this club and it will be great to play against him.

“I have always enjoyed watching the top-class, world-class players and I think I learned a lot from this.

“As a young player you have to look a lot at the experienced players, but you also have to go into this game yourself knowing that you can do something.”