Rio Ngumoha is still only 16. But this is why he is impossible to ignore at Liverpool

New York Times

6 days ago

As several Liverpool senior players found their touch and technique deserting them on the cut-up surface of the Nissan Stadium, Rio Ngumoha showed them how it's done.
Not for the first time during this pre-season, the 16-year-old was the player everybody was talking about following another brilliant cameo that included the goal that sealed Liverpool's 3-1 victory over Yokohama F Marinos.
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In just 26 minutes, the youngster lit up the game in Tokyo, bamboozling the hosts' tiring defence, just as he had in previous games against Preston North End, Stoke City and Milan.
It is a testament to how he is viewed and the impact he has made this summer that Liverpool do not see left wing as an area of their squad that needs strengthening, even after the sale of Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich.
Cody Gakpo is the established left-winger, while Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike could also play there. But Ngumoha's development has seen him force his way into Slot's thinking for a permanent place in his first-team squad and potentially save the club some money in the transfer market. There is no desire to block Ngumoha's pathway to senior football.
So, how has he done it?
When Ngumoha chose to leave Chelsea for Liverpool last year, the London club were furious that they were losing one of England's brightest young talents. Since his arrival, he has shown why there was such disappointment in west London, impressing Liverpool's senior and academy coaching staff in training sessions and matches for various age groups.
His surprise start against Accrington Stanley in the third round of the FA Cup in January exposed him to Liverpool supporters at first-team level and rewarded him for the rapid progress he was making.
His 72-minute showing at Anfield that day was full of quick feet and excitement. The League Two side quickly doubled up on him and the only missing piece to his performance was end product — quite normal for a 16-year-old making their debut.
Still, as he returned to the under-21 setup for the rest of the campaign, improving his end product became a point of emphasis. If any indication was needed on how that is going, he has two goals and one assist in his four appearances so far in pre-season.
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His goal at Yokohama illustrated how dangerous he can be with the ball at his feet and space to run into.
With Liverpool on the counter-attack, Ngumoha advanced from near the halfway line and showed his confidence to keep hold of the ball rather than use any of his team-mates, skip past the challenge of Kosei Suwama, and fire a shot beyond Ryoya Kimura.
The smile on Mohamed Salah's face in the moments after the goal further emphasised the impact he has made. Salah and other senior squad members, including Andy Robertson, have helped Ngumoha settle in at first-team level, offering advice when possible.
There is a fearlessness to everything he does, but he couples that with quality. This isn't a youngster dribbling down blind alleys to try to impress; this is a winger tormenting defenders with trickery, pace and purpose.
From the moment he was named in the starting XI against Preston, Ngumoha has had one aim: to get on the ball and drive at his opponent. He was a constant threat at Deepdale and the source of several key chances, including Conor Bradley's opening goal.
He is not quite a chalk-on-boots winger, but Ngumoha stays high and wide to give him space to be found by team-mates. That allows him to build up speed and attack the defender, putting them on the back foot.
As the example below shows, when he is around the opposition penalty box, he uses his close control, agility and acceleration to burst away from opponents. On this occasion, he shaped to come inside before darting to the byline. His cross was intercepted with Darwin Nunez ready to pounce.
A similar move nearly led to a goal against Milan, when he used that speed to wrong-foot Fikayo Tomori and unleash an effort on goal that was parried away by Mike Maignan.
The connection he has built with Trey Nyoni has been on display, too, and the pair complement each other on the pitch.
When playing together, the pair frequently combine with one-twos around the opposition area, with Ngumoha capable of making dangerous runs into the box, and Nyoni has the quality to pick out the return pass.
He nearly got on the scoresheet earlier against Yokohama by linking with Nyoni. Again, Ngumoha used his agility to work a shooting opportunity, breaking into a similar position to where he scored his goal against Stoke, but his effort was saved.
That moment, however, was also a reminder that Ngumoha is a young man with plenty to learn, especially in regards to his decision-making. While he did manage to shoot, he could have laid the ball off to Alexis Mac Allister or Curtis Jones to create a better goalscoring opportunity.
That was not lost on Slot when he addressed the media after the game. 'There was also a moment in the game where he should have squared it to Macca (Mac Allister) or Curtis (Jones),' he said. 'So, (there were) also learning parts for him. But if you are 16 and you can impact the game like he did, that's definitely worth a compliment.
'Rio again showed the quality he has and that's nice for us because we have a lot of very good players. But to get some very good players through the academy is always helpful and always gives energy to a team as well.'
Ngumoha's most encouraging performance of the four so far was against Milan when he came up against Tomori, who is an experienced top-level defender that has strength and speed.
The 27-year-old got the better of the early exchanges, but as the half wore on, Ngumoha's relentlessness allowed him to start getting the better of the defender, including for his assist for Dominik Szoboszlai.
His quick feet forced Tomori to backpedal and created space for him to cross the ball. While the low delivery was blocked, Ngumoha didn't rush his next move, playing the sensible pass to Szoboszlai, who produced an excellent finish.
Given this was a summer without a major international tournament, Slot has been able to work with the bulk of his first-team squad from the moment pre-season began. That meant fewer youngsters made up the tour squad than usual, so it was a statement to the impression Ngumoha and fellow youngster Nyoni had made that they were taken on the trip.
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During the opening weeks and on tour, the pair have continued to impress the first-team coaching staff with their attitude and talent, and they have grasped their opportunity in matches. There is a sense that they could become permanent fixtures in the squad, which would allow other youngsters such as Tyler Morton and Ben Doak to move on without any concerns over the squad's depth in those areas.
Ngumoha's potentially larger role this season is more than anyone could reasonably have expected even a month ago. He will still need to be managed carefully and expectations should remain realistic.
But the problem is that Ngumoha is showing why he is one of the hottest prospects in European football. He may be impossible to ignore.