Rio Ngumoha‘s lack of minutes for Liverpool have bemused some, but Arne Slot has explained the youngster’s situation.
The Reds haven’t had a huge amount to enjoy this season, but Ngumoha’s last-gasp winner away to Newcastle was arguably the highlight of the campaign.
The 17-year-old is yet to start a Premier League game in 2025/26, however, despite fellow wingers Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo struggling for form.
• READ: Rio Ngumoha makes surprise Liverpool U21s return
Ngumoha played for Liverpool’s U21s in their recent 2-1 friendly loss to OGC Nice, and speaking to reporters, Slot explained why he has featured so little for the first team of late.
“I think he has the most minutes of all 17-year-olds in the Premier League. So that tells you how much playing time he gets, how special that already is for a 17-year-old,” Slot said.
“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’s not my biggest concern, I would say.
“So hopefully Cody is back, not sure but hopefully, Federico can play there, Florian 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.”
Does Ngumoha deserve to feature more for Liverpool?
There is plenty of sense in Slot’s treatment of Ngumoha, not wanting to overplay a young player at this level as he matures.
That said, there have been times when Liverpool have been crying out for his fearlessness in the final third, with others failing to fire.
Slot has rightly handled Ngumoha with care overall, though, and asking him to inspire a struggling team is both unfair and unrealistic.
But the winger has a huge future at Liverpool, with Slot lauding his qualities after his Reds debut at the start of the year.
“Every time when he comes training with us we see what his qualities are,” Slot said.
“He can dominate one-v-one situations, he is very quick on his feet, he can change directions really fast.
“I’m always happy if a player makes his debut that he shows what we see on the training ground as well, so the fans could see it.”
Chances should continue to come Ngumoha’s way sporadically, with a start in the FA Cup third round at home to Barnsley on January 12 making sense.
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