Rio Ngumoha inspired by Mohamed Salah as influence on Liverpool talent clear

Rio Ngumoha is being inspired by Mohamed Salah at Liverpool with the teenager hoping for more minutes this season even as the Reds fight for a Champions League place

Rio Ngumoha during a Liverpool training session.(Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Young Liverpool forward Rio Ngumoha has named Mohamed Salah as among the best — and his favorite — players in world soccer after working with the Egyptian at Anfield.

Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe were his picks for the best players in the world right now, while Salah, Thierry Henry and Ronaldo were named as the best in the Premier League era.

Speaking to ESPN, when asked for his current favorite players in the Premier League, Ngumoha went for Salah, Jeremy Doku (Manchester City) and Noni Madueke (Arsenal). Certainly with Doku, there are similarities in style. Ngumoha has often dazzled with his quick feet and rapid changes of direction when afforded chances to impress at senior level under Arne Slot this season.

Liverpool has kept a clear pathway to the first team clear for the 17-year-old, who signed from Chelsea around 18 months ago, leaving the Stamford Bridge side furious that it was losing such a huge talent.

"I think he has the most minutes of all 17-year-olds in the Premier League," Slot said at the turn of the year. "That tells you how much playing time he gets, how special that already is for a 17-year-old.

Trey Nyoni and Rio Ngumoha of Liverpool(Image: MB Media/Getty Images)

"That also tells you something about his quality, because it’s not completely normal for a 17-year-old already to have as much playing time as he had.

"But it also tells you something about the availability in those areas. For the weekend, that position is not my biggest concern, I would say.

"So hopefully Cody [Gakpo] is back, not sure but hopefully, Federico [Chiesa] can play there, Florian [Wirtz] can play there, so if he would be a player in a different position he would probably have even more chance to come in.

"But it’s the same for all the other players. I think in the game against Tottenham, I had four under-21 players on the bench, so that increases the chance for him to come in as well. So let’s see."

Had Liverpool not drawn another Premier League team in the FA Cup, Ngumoha and Trey Nyoni might have played a part last weekend. Instead, Slot went with a stronger and more experienced team to brush Brighton aside.

Though he has not played as much as might have been expected, Ngumoha is still benefiting from training with the likes of Salah. Clearly, the Liverpool number 11 is having a positive influence.

Liverpool.com says: Ngumoha is a huge talent. Come next season, there might be an argument for sending him out on loan, but the Reds have been very careful with him up to now.

In addition to limiting his minutes, Slot has also kept the spotlight away from the teenager. That will become more difficult the more he plays, but it is a sensible policy.