Divock Origi says he has moved on from his difficult spell at Milan, including the decision by Zlatan Ibrahimovic to remove him from the first-team squad and send him to Milan Futuro.
The former Belgium forward, now 31, ended his playing career despite his last official appearance coming in 2024 for Nottingham Forest. He had joined the Premier League club on loan after a disappointing period at Milan, where he arrived as a free agent from Liverpool in 2022.
Origi’s contract with Milan was eventually terminated by mutual consent on January 1, 2026, following a two-year legal dispute. After failing to recover his fitness and form, he had been moved into the Milan Futuro youth set-up, but refused to train with the younger players.
“I was 27 years old, the era at Liverpool had come to an end, so I wanted to deal with a new challenge and escape my comfort zone,” Origi told Het Laatse Nieuwa in Belgium, via La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“Paolo Maldini was determined to sign me, he really believed in me. The problem was, I was injured when I arrived at Milan. I wasn’t in good shape, normally I would have the pre-season training with my trainer, but that time it was not possible.”
Origi made 36 competitive appearances for Milan, scoring two goals and providing one assist. During his loan at Nottingham Forest the following season, he played 22 matches and recorded one goal and one assist.
His return to San Siro in 2024 marked the beginning of the final stage of his time at the club. Origi says Ibrahimovic was responsible for excluding him from the squad and directing him towards Milan Futuro.
“I take nothing personally,” said Origi. “It was a work decision. Obviously, I was not happy, but I’ve left it behind me now. Zlatan remains a legend.”
Asked about the circumstances after Maldini had left Milan, Origi said he was prevented from training with the senior squad, while indicating that contractual restrictions limited what he could disclose.
“I was excluded from the squad and they would not allow me to train with the rest of the players. There was the opportunity of working with the Milan Futuro team, but there are some things I am contractually bound not to reveal…”
“I will simply say that I did not agree with all of this. I remained concentrated in that period at Milan, I trained by myself. You don’t just learn from wonderful moments, but the painful ones too. Everything you experience is a life lesson.”
Origi is now pursuing a different challenge as a student at Harvard University. He wants to develop his entrepreneurial skills while exploring his interests in fashion and design.
“Everyone here knows I was a football player, but now I want to work on my entrepreneurial abilities and combine that with fashion and design, my other passions. I am a reserved person, I even closed down my Instagram messages.”
