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Arne Slot clearly loves Rio Ngumoha. But even though his manager has repeatedly sung his praises, the precocious teenager is still finding ways to surpass expectations.
The 16-year-old was one of the standout stars of preseason. But come the Bournemouth match, Ngumoha was left on the bench even as Liverpool had to dig in to salvage a late win.
Tempering expectations, Slot tacitly conceded that he was reluctant to turn to someone so young to try and turn the tide. Federico Chiesa was the hero that day instead, and the Premier League opener concluded with a sense that perhaps Liverpool might still need to use the market to find a Luis Diaz replacement.
Fast forward a week, and a sense persists that Liverpool may be one forward light, especially as the Alexander Isak saga drags on. But Ngumoha could not be doing any more to convince Slot that he needs a clear pathway to the first team.
This time around, Slot did give him a chance to influence proceedings, albeit only in the last scraps of added time against Newcastle. At the point when Ngumoha came on, Liverpool found itself strangely under the cosh from the 10-man Magpies, and a draw was starting to look more appealing.
But even before his dramatic late moment, Ngumoha turned the tide. His fearlessness on the ball got Liverpool back up the pitch, relieving some of the pressure that had been building.
And then came his headline contribution. Showing awareness beyond his years to arrive at the back post at the perfect time, he then produced a ridiculously cool first-time finish beyond Nick Pope to send the away fans into raptures.
By leaving him out against Bournemouth, perhaps Slot was on some level trying to contain the hype, to manage expectations. But the cat is firmly out of the bag — this is a hugely exciting talent who is already at a level where he can mix it with the best.
In that sense, Ngumoha is effectively forcing Slot to change the plan. What might have been earmarked as a season of very gradual exposure to the first team is now a campaign where the teenager has a case to be included week-in, week-out.
Calls to start would probably be a touch premature, although a few more late contributions like that will certainly attract such shouts. But at the very least, there would be a strong case to utilize Ngumoha's fresh legs off the bench more often than not.
It was great that he could secure the points against Newcastle, but he would have been every bit as useful coming on at 2-0 up. Perhaps Liverpool would not have found itself so penned in if he had been there as an outlet, tying opposing full-backs in knots and making a nuisance of himself.
He has now stood up and proved himself across a consistent run of games in preseason, and shown that the impact can translate to competitive fixtures. The only thing holding Slot back from using his more would be his age.
But is that a good enough reason? It's looking like a weaker and weaker case.
There's no suggestion that Slot has got anything wrong up to this point — he is keenly aware that he is dealing with someone who still has a lot of physical and emotional maturing to do, and that comes with a need for added caution. But from a footballing standpoint, there can be little doubt now: Ngumoha is ready.
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