SPECIAL TALENT

Everyone at Anfield agrees about Rio after star performance in FA Cup win

- By PAUL GORST LFC Correspondent

ASKED for an appraisal on Rio Ngumoha’s performance after Liverpool beat Wolves 3-1 to secure their place in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup, there was a recurring theme from Arne Slot, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson.

That the head coach, the club captain and his deputy all spoke of the 17-year-old being “special” said it all. It’s an adjective rarely dished out, but at Molineux on Friday night, Ngumoha showcased exactly why there is so much hype around him at Anfield.

“Potentially elite” was the verdict from Liverpool scouts when they were on the cusp of bringing him in from Chelsea nearly two years ago and the fact that the furious Londoners subsequently banned Reds talent spotters from attending their games revealed a lot as to how cutthroat the business of youth recruitment is.

But it said a lot about Ngumoha's belief in his own ability that he moved some 200 miles north at the age of 15 in 2024. Liverpool felt it was their recent history with creating pathways to senior stardom for their best academy players that swung it for the ambitious teenager and his family.

Described by one seasoned watcher of youth football as one of the very best players in Europe for his age range, Ngumoha has done nothing to date to suggest the big build that accompanied his Anfield arrival was overblown hyperbole.

But if van Dijk, Robertson and Slot are all in agreement of Liverpool having a special talent in their midst where the precocious Ngumoha is concerned, the message from three Premier League winners is also as consistent.

“We all see what a special talent he is in terms of his one-v-ones and the way he drives at players,’ says van Dijk. “He’s a good boy, we look after him, and he’s got to keep learning.”