6 days ago
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Despite the presence of some flashy new signings, 16-year-old wonderkid Rio Nguomha has been the talk of Liverpool's undefeated preseason campaign. The former Chelsea man has dazzled with a pair of solo goals and may force himself into head coach Arne Slot's plans for the upcoming campaign.
Other members of the Liverpool side have taken notice. Jeremie Frimpong, who only joined from Bayer Leverkusen earlier this summer, has already coined a nickname for the dibbly winger. "That's Mr. 1 vs 1 right there," the Dutchman said when he saw Nguomha in the most recent 'LFC All Red' video.
The nickname doesn't come out of the blue: both of the 16-year-old's goals this season have come from mazy solo, dribbly runs where he takes on a slew of defenders by himself.
Who is Nguomha? He was a product of the Chelsea academy before bolting for Liverpool last summer when his contract ended. He spent most of last season playing for the Reds' Premier League 2 side, scoring twice.
He became the youngest player in Liverpool history to start a competitive game when he lined up against Accrington Stanley in the third round of last year's FA Cup.
Nguomha registered a goal and an assist against Athletic Bilbao at Anfield on Monday, completing both of his dribble attempts and 15 of 17 passes. He scored another goal in his previous game against Yokohama in Japan, and logged an assist and completed three of four dribbles against Milan before that.
Liverpool seemingly have a hole at left wing after selling Luis Diaz, another dribbler and ball carrier who profiles eerily similar to Nguomha, that Slot could fill with the young Englishan.
The Reds have also been linked with a pair of blockbuster late-window signings this week who could also patch the gap: PSG's Bradley Barcola and Real Madrid's Rodrygo.
Slot simultaneously praised Nguomha and poured cold water on the hype train when asked about the wonderkid in Japan.
“We’ve only played two games over her,e and we haven’t played against Premier League opponents yet. But I see him train, I see him play, and the impact he has when he trains and plays is really promising," the Dutch manager told James Perace of The Athletic. "Playing in the Premier League, playing every three days with the Champions League games in between, that’s something else."
"But he’s definitely a player who shows at this moment in time that if he keeps bringing these performances in, then tonight (against Yokohama F Marinos) definitely won’t be the last time he plays a few minutes for Liverpool. It’s all about consistency. He needs to show it every single day we’re on the pitch.”
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