Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, applauds the fans following the Premier League match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Anfield on November 22, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images)placeholder image
Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, applauds the fans following the Premier League match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Anfield on November 22, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Arne Slot may look to make changes to his Liverpool team against PSV Eindhoven and one player who may be under consideration is Rio Ngumoha.
Arne Slot is not blissfully ignorant. He does not need telling that he has come under pressure and feels guilty about the predicament.
A run of six defeats in seven games is deemed unsatisfactory for any club; never mind the Premier League champions. We have not even made it to December yet Liverpool’s aspirations of defending the Premier League title are over.
Had Slot not delivered the Reds’ 20th English championship in his maiden campaign as head coach, the mood among supporters might be more negative. Yet Kopites are aware of what the Dutchman delivered last term and he has credit in the bank remaining.
It means that the Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven is a must-win. Despite Liverpool doing well in their European campaign, the fightback must start against the Dutch side. Sunday’s trip to West Ham United is even more important yet there will be an expectation from the home faithful against PSV.
Liverpool will head into the game as resounding favourites. In Europe, the Reds have delivered their best performances of the season, thrashing Eintracht Frankfurt 5-1 while they earned a 1-0 victory over Real Madrid two weeks ago.
In truth, failing to beat PSV Eindhoven would put Slot under more scrutiny. A maiden draw of the season would not be good enough. PSV top the Eredivisie by six points - yet Slot will be the first to admit the Dutch league is significantly weaker than the Premier League.
Slot may be tempted to play a strong XI but in this run of seven games in 22 days, the PSV clash is arguably the least important and easiest.
Therefore, Slot is likely to shake up his starting line-up. Rests And to be frank, some of the fringe players deserve a chance to show their worth. It cannot be any worse than what has been on display in the past two games.
And someone who requires minutes is Rio Ngumoha. The 17-year-old's situation in this campaign has perhaps hindered his progress in terms of regular minutes. Ngumoha is regarded as a cast-iron member of Slot's first-team set-up. He is a precocious talent, as he displayed when dazzling in pre-season and was hailed as ‘fearless’ by Harvey Elliott.
When Ngumoha came off the bench to score a dramatic stoppage-time winner at Newcastle United, becoming Liverpool's youngest scorer aged 16 and 361 days, there were few who were surprised. It confirmed why Chelsea were fuming they had the winger poached from them.
However, since that memorable intervention, Ngumoha’s role at Liverpool has been limited. In the Premier League, he has made only four more cameos off the bench, while he started both of the Reds’ Carabao Cup ties.
As he is regarded as a bona fide senior option, Ngumoha has not been afforded any game-time for the under-21s or the under-19s in the UEFA Youth League this season. His ability could be regarded as a blessing and a curse.
Ngumoha is in a position that few teenagers can reach and is training with top-class players on a daily basis. That will help him improve and mature. Yet it is having a consequence on the number of matches and minutes he is playing, with Cody Gakpo, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike preferred in the left-wing role. In some cases, there is nothing better than playing in games.
However, after coming on against Forest, the England youth international gave a reminder of his quality. In his 16 minutes on the pitch, Ngumoha had 14 touches and successfully completed all three dribbles completed. He also won three ground duels and made two ball recoveries.
A reason why Liverpool did not sign a direct replacement for Luis Diaz in the summer was because they did not want to block the pathway for Ngumoha. If the Reds want to ensure that his progress does not stagnate then an outing against PSV should be in the offing.
Continue Reading