Liverpool Transfer News: Divock Origi Fee Emerges as Lille Target Jozy Altidore

Liverpool hope to recall striker Divock Origi from his loan at Lille in January—but they must be willing to meet the £5 million fee set by the Ligue 1 outfit.

The Reds signed the Belgian youngster over the summer for a fee of £10 million and are hoping to end his loan early to ease their attacking concerns. David Anderson of the Mirror reveals they'll need to stump up more cash to do so:

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It is likely to cost the Reds up to an additional £5million to release Origi from his one-year loan back to previous club Lille on top of the £10m deal they agreed with the French side last summer.

Daniel Sturridge had a scan on Wednesday after a recurrence of his thigh injury which had contributed to him being out of club action since August, and the Kop club expect him to be out until the New Year.

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The absence of Sturridge has made for a difficult season at Anfield. After 11 games, the Reds have scored as many goals as 17th-place Crystal Palace (14) and are currently lodged in 11th place.

Summer signings Mario Balotelli and Rickie Lambert are yet to muster a Premier League goal between them since completing their respective Merseyside moves, while Origi has enjoyed better form in France.

Geert Vanden Wijngaert/Associated Press

According to Squawka, the 19-year-old has netted three goals and created nine chances for his side in Ligue 1 action, following up a promising 2014 World Cup by impressing back at the Stade Pierre Mauroy.

Former Reds defender Mark Lawrenson writes for the Liverpool Echo, saying that based on current form, Origi trumps £16 million man Balotelli:

However, adding another 50 percent onto the transfer fee is no small decision for Brendan Rodgers' side, where the short-term impact must be weighed up against the value of said deal.

The attacker may have quashed any such prospect of an early return to Anfield himself, though, taking to social media to reassure his French fans:

Origi's success in the English top flight wouldn't be guaranteed, after all, and were the starlet to struggle as his fellow Liverpool forwards have this term, it's another investment that could be labelled poor by the club's fans.

Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe recently examined how a change in tactics could help turn Liverpool's season around, but ultimately, the return of Sturridge is seen as a most essential change:

Rodgers' hopes have been helped by reports that Lille are eyeing up Sunderland's Jozy Altidore as a replacement.

According to the Daily Mail's Simon Jones, the U.S.A. international could be offered a Stadium of Light exit after struggling to tie down his place as the first-choice striker under Gus Poyet.

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Altidore is yet to start a Premier League match this season and he has watched from the sidelines as Steven Fletcher and Connor Wickham have taken precedence in the Black Cats' line-up.

Jones does add that Sunderland's demands may be a stumbling block. After paying £7 million for the previously prolific AZ Alkmaar attacker, the north-east outfit won't want to sell for much less than that fee.

However, should Liverpool choose to pay the suggested £5 million figure for Origi, meeting such a price would be more acceptable, putting the ball firmly in Liverpool's court.