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Rio Ngumoha scored at Anfield in a 4-1 pre-season win over Athletic Bilbao (Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Three minutes later, Ngumoha drove forward again and rolled a pass into the feet of Darwin Nunez who doubled Liverpool’s lead with a close range finish.

The fans erupted in chants of ‘Rio, Rio, Rio’ making their excitable feelings about Liverpool’s latest starlet well known and doing nothing to quell the hype around a player yet to make his Premier League debut.



The outcome of that tribunal has not been disclosed.

Arne Slot, in his first year in charge at Anfield, also recognised that Ngumoha had the potential to succeed at the highest level and named him in Liverpool’s matchday squad for a League Cup clash with Southampton in December 2024.

That appearance, at 16 years and 135 days old, made him the youngest Liverpool player to appear in the FA Cup and the youngest player to start a first-team game in the club's history.

If 2024/25 only hinted at the rising potential of Ngumoha then this summer’s pre-season has put him on a trajectory straight to the Liverpool first team.

Speaking after the Marinos win Slot said: "We’ve only played two games over here 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.

Ngumoha has shined in Liverpool's pre-season and is pushing for more minutes in the first team this year (Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

"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 that if he keeps bringing these performances in, it definitely won’t be the last time he plays a few minutes for Liverpool.

He needs to show it every single day we’re on the pitch."

Slot added: "Rio is showing things every time in pre-season."

For Ngumoha, who turns 17 later this month, breaking into the Liverpool first team is the current aim but he won’t hurry his development.