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Origi: I knew what TAA was about to do before quick corner in UCL game vs Barca

  /  autty

Divock Origi has revealed he knew Trent Alexander-Arnold was about to do 'something instinctive' before his quick corner which sent Liverpool towards Champions League glory last year.

Origi and Alexander-Arnold combined to put Barcelona to the sword in last year's semi-final second leg at Anfield last year, overturning a three-goal deficit.

The Belgian striker scored twice as Jurgen Klopp's side pulled off a monumental comeback before going on to beat Tottenham in the final in Madrid.

And Origi has admitted to BT Sport that he saw his young team-mate was about to do something off the cuff to catch the Barca defence off guard.

He said: 'I did see. I saw a ball on the pitch and I wanted to give it back to the ball boy. So when I gave it back to the ball boy I was walking back but people took some time to come in position, and so automatically I was looking at who was taking the corner.

'Depending on that it changes my positioning on the corner. So when I was looking I could see Trent looking up, and I think we made brief eye contact and I could see that he was going to do something instinctively.

'So when he whipped that ball in, I just tried to make sure it was in the side. I looked up before I could kick the ball and I saw that Pique and ter Stegen were more in the middle and the left side was open, so it's quite a hard shot.

'I was happy. It happened so quick, even mentally to realise it takes a while. And it was a key moment.'

Origi's second capped off an incredible night at Anfield. He had scored the early opener before a swift Georginio Wijnaldum brace had brought the tie level on aggregate.

Liverpool had collapsed to a 3-0 defeat at the Nou Camp just a week before and were without the injured Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino for the return.

Origi went on to score again in the final, a late second to confirm a 2-0 victory over Spurs at the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid.