Liverpool remain hopeful that the knock striker Divock Origi suffered after coming on as a substitute in Sunday's 2-1 Premier League win away at Bournemouth is nothing serious.

The in-form Belgian, who has scored four goals in his last four appearances in all competitions, only came off the bench with 15 minutes remaining but appeared to leave the pitch suffering discomfort at the Vitality Stadium.

With the second Merseyside Derby of the season against Everton coming on Wednesday and two legs of the Europa League semi-finals with Villarreal looming on the horizon, any injury would represent a serious blow to Jürgen Klopp's side. 

Liverpool hopeful of having Origi available 

In the last two weeks, the Reds have lost Emre Can and Jordan Henderson for much of the rest of the season with ankle ligament and knee ligament injuries respectively and an injury to Origi would leave them with only Daniel Sturridge and Roberto Firmino as striking options with Christian Benteke struggling with a knee ligament injury and Danny Ings ruled out for the campaign.

The former Lille forward has been excellent in recent weeks, improving greatly under Klopp having reportedly piled on around four kilograms of muscle after being told to "play more like a man" by his manager.

Origi and Klopp after the full-time whistle at Bournemouth on Sunday. (Picture: Getty Images)
Origi and Klopp after the full-time whistle at Bournemouth on Sunday. (Picture: Getty Images)

His increased strength, coupled with his industrious work ethic and troubling pace and skill, has seen him become more and more important to Klopp - even starting the first leg of their quarter-final away at Borussia Dortmund and rewarding his manager with a fine goal.

He has nine goals in his first season in England, netting a brace in last weekend's 4-1 demolition of Stoke City on home turf, and at his current rate is highly likely to reach double figures before the end of the season.

Touré injury "a little bit more", reveals Klopp

Klopp, speaking in the aftermath of Liverpool's victory on the South Coast at the weekend, revealed that Origi had pain in his back because of "a knock" and said: "He was able to carry on, but I asked him after the game and he told me he had a knock to his back."

The German added that he hopes the problem that Origi, who celebrated his 21st birthday on Monday, complained of is "not serious" and hinted that he would be assessed prior to the derby at Anfield in midweek, before explaining that Kolo Touré injury may be more serious.

Klopp told the press that his issue "is a little bit more" and that "it's the muscle" but that he could not indicate whether it was "cramp or something more." However, an upbeat Reds boss continued: "But in the last few months, Kolo has not had any problems with his muscles, so hopefully it's not too serious either."

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About the author
Charlie Malam
Digital Sports Writer at the Daily Express. First-class Staffordshire University Sports Journalism graduate. Formerly VAVEL UK's Liverpool FC editor and Deputy Editor-in-Chief. Contributor since June 2014.