On Saturday, the Reds defeated Preston North End of the Championship 3-1 in their first preseason friendly of the summer.
Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez, and Conor Bradley all scored goals on what turned out to be a very emotional day for the team.
Both teams honored Diogo Jota of Liverpool and his brother Andre Silva, who died in a car accident in Spain early on July 3.
After Jota’s death, the Reds made the decision to postpone some of the players’ planned preseason return dates.
As a result, some players from the club’s youth team were given opportunities, and some members of the first team were absent at Deepdale.
Rio Ngumoha, a 16-year-old winger who moved from Chelsea to Liverpool last year, was one of them.
In January, when the Reds played Accrington Stanley in the FA Cup third round, he became the youngest player to start a first team game at the age of 16 years and 135 days.
And with yet another strong performance on Saturday, Ngumoha demonstrated that he has advanced even more in the seven months since.
Since manager Arne Slot called him up to first team training in October 2024, Ngumoha has been “terrorizing” senior players with his skills, according to a January Anfield Watch report.
Additionally, it was stated that Liverpool had been removing Ngumoha’s footage from their online video series, “Inside Training,” because Slot and his coaching staff had been “mesmerized” by the young player’s performances.
According to the report, the Reds are “carefully managing expectations” regarding the winger; however, if the wonderkid continues to play in preseason, interest in him will undoubtedly increase.
Journalist David Lynch claims that Liverpool is working on a new deal for Ngumoha, who turns 17 next month. It is unclear if he will be more involved in the starting lineup the following season.
Lynch stated: “It’s evident that he’s being prepared for a more significant role in the future. He has the opportunity to make an impression and demonstrate that he is deserving of a few more appearances this season during these [preseason] games.
“He will soon enter that age range as he turns 17 years old. When that time comes, I anticipate that he will sign his first professional contract, and from what I understand, that will probably be announced shortly.
“Of course, from his perspective, he just wants to build on what he’s done in the first team last season, stay around training and make a few more appearances.”