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Rio Ngumoha is the name on every Liverpool fan’s lips after his sensational winning goal against Newcastle on Monday.
The teenager became the youngest scorer in the club’s history when he came off the bench and netted the decisive goal in the 3-2 win at St. James’ Park. Ngumoha also became the fourth-youngest scorer in Premier League history and the first 16-year-old to net a winning goal in the top flight since Wayne Rooney in 2002.
Having joined from Chelsea last summer, the winger has quickly transitioned into the first-team picture. While Jayden Danns and Trey Nyoni were playing for the youth team on Monday, Ngumoha’s involvement in the first team speaks to how highly rated he is by staff at Kirkby.
The youngster made his first-team debut in January when he started in Liverpool’s FA Cup victory over Accrington Stanley, and many fans may not have been aware of the precocious talent on the club’s books before "Ngumoha 73" was seen flying down the wing.
But when making his Premier League debut on Monday, Liverpool’s newest star simply had "Rio" on the back of his shirt.
That, Liverpool.com understands, was a choice made by the player, with Premier League rules allowing players to request which name adorns their shirts, so long as the Latin alphabet is used and no special characters are displayed, such as "!" or "#."
For instance, Virgil van Dijk has just 'Virgil" on the back of his shirt, while the late Diogo Jota chose "Diogo. J" as he wore it at his previous club, Porto.
But the FA rules are stricter, and players must adopt their surname in the FA Cup, hence why "Ngumoha" was on display earlier this year.
The ex-Chelsea youngster's personal Instagram account lists his name as "Rio Ngumoha Adigun," while the Premier League wrote his full name as "Chima Rio Ngumoha" when announcing the squads earlier this summer.
Either way, fans should get used to seeing "Ngumoha" and "Rio" more often following Monday’s dramatic encounter at St. James’ Park.
“I’m buzzing,” the teenager told LFCTV after the Newcastle match. “I’m so happy to score, especially with it being the winner. It was a good moment, a special feeling.
“The fans, I heard them screaming my name. That was a sensational moment.
“But you can’t get too carried away with the noise. I probably do that finish 100 times on the training ground, so it’s no different with the fans, but the fans backing you there is just crazy.”
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