Virgil van Dijk sends message to Rio Ngumoha despite heroics - 'A lot to learn'

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Liverpool IconLiverpool FC NewsFeaturesRio NgumohaThe youngster came off the bench and helped Liverpool to take all three points at the City Ground on Sunday, but Van Dijk is keen not raise expectations on the wingerVirgil van Dijk has looked to downplay the pressure on Rio NgumohaVirgil van Dijk was keen to play down expectations around Rio Ngumoha after the teenager made a game-changing impact in Sunday’s win over Nottingham Forest.The winger was introduced for the final knockings of Liverpool’s trip to the City Ground and made a telling impact. In his 20 minutes on the field, including injury time, Ngumoha completed more dribbles and created more chances than Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo, who started the game in the wide areas.It was the youngster’s cross that resulted in Alexis Mac Allister’s disallowed goal, and Ngumoha’s presence on the field caused Forest to rethink its defensive approach in the latter stages.READ MORE: Rio Ngumoha agreement reached after Jamie Carragher issues Liverpool demandREAD MORE: Virgil van Dijk spots vital Liverpool trait after 'chaos' at Nottingham ForestHis impressive cameo follows on the back of excellent showings off the bench against Brighton & Hove Albion, Qarabag, and Bournemouth in the last month, and there are renewed calls for him to be handed a start in certain matches.Jamie Carragher pushed for that on Sunday, while Daniel Sturridge praised Ngumoha’s contribution on social media after the Forest encounter.However, the ex-Chelsea youth-team star has only started once in nearly four months, with Arne Slot careful not to integrate Ngumoha too quickly.As captain, Van Dijk evidently shares that caution.

“He is very direct, obviously, he goes past players and has a lot to learn, but he had a good impact today. It's on to the next one for him, nothing more, nothing less,” the defender told reporters after the Forest game.Ngumoha was excellent after coming off the bench against Forest(Image: Getty Images)Meanwhile, Slot was keen to reinforce his view that, for a 17-year-old, Ngumoha is earning more minutes at the senior level than any of his peers.“He has incredible potential, otherwise, at 17 years of age, you don’t play as many minutes as he does in the Premier League, let alone at Liverpool," Slot said.“I don't think there is an 18-year-old or 19-year-old that has maybe played as many minutes as Rio.Slot has been careful with his selection of Ngumoha(Image: Offside via Getty Images)“That tells you how much of a talent he is and we think he is.

He is making progress more and more and that's why you see him playing more and more.“He gets stronger and stronger. Apart from his moment when he had his one-v-one, there were also one or two other moments where he stands his ground.“That is what you need because you face 25, 26, 27, 28-year-old athletes mainly as your opponents because we are a bit of an exception in terms of our age of our group of players.”Liverpool FCVirgil Van DijkRio Ngumoha