Liverpool 3-2 AC Milan: why was Virgil van Dijk left out and why Divock Origi played in Champions League win

Virgil van Dijk dropped to the bench as Liverpool raised the curtain to their 2021-22 Champions League campaign with a 3-2 win over AC Milan on Wednesday.

The defender was left on the bench for the thrilling clash, with Joe Gomez starting instead.

Why was Van Dijk omitted?

Jurgen Klopp opted to give his star defender a rest.

The centre-back came back from a long-term knee injury that he sustained against Everton last October at the start of this season.

Van Dijk had played in all four Premier League games so far as well as featuring twice for the Netherlands during the international break earlier this month.

Ahead of kick-off, Klopp told BT Sport: “Virgil could have played. I had to force myself to be really sensible and that’s how it is. We have a lot of games coming up.

“It’s not exactly what Virgil wanted, it’s not exactly what I wanted but I had to do it anyway.”

Why Origi played?

The Belgium international's inclusion certainly took plenty by surprise.

Origi hadn't been included in the past three match-day squads but comes back into the starting XI.

But he played a prominent role in the victory. The forward was a constant threat throughout and got his reward with a delightful assist for Mo Salah’s second-half equaliser.

Before the game, Klopp said: “Up front we need speed and have to use the full squad.

“It’s nothing to do with disrespecting AC Milan or whatever, it’s about bring It’s about bringing fresh legs in and kind of surprising the opponent a bit.”