Rio Ngumoha, despite not coming on until the 65th minute, was one of Liverpool’s best players against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Liverpool lost 2-1, and after the match, there has been an outpouring of support from the likes of Steven Gerrard and Jeremaine Pennant for Ngumoha to start in the FA Cup on Friday evening.
It’s easy to see why, given the 17-year-old is currently outperforming the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal for chances created per 90 this season.
Who you dropping for Ngumoha against Wolves in the FA Cup then?
Rio Ngumoha of Liverpool running during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD1 match between Liverpool FC and Atletico de Madrid at Anfield
Credit: Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar/Getty Images
Rio Ngumoha among Europe’s best for chances created per 90 in 25/26
Despite losing and scoring just one goal, Liverpool created plenty of chances against Wolves, with Ngumoha managing two during his short time on the pitch.
It means that the 17-year-old is now averaging 6.3 chances created per 90 in the Premier League this season, which is among the highest in Europe and more than any other Liverpool player has managed this term.
Dominik Szoboszlai, who created four against Wolves, has the joint second-highest per-90 ratio in Arne Slot’s team (2.1) alongside Florian Wirtz (2.1), the latter of whom missed the game on Tuesday due to injury.
Ngumoha’s staggering ability to create chances gets even more impressive when looking at some of Europe’s elite players.
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Lamine Yamal has created the most chances of any player in La Liga this term (61), but his per-90 stats are still some way lower than Ngumoha’s (3.0).
Similarly, while he’s widely regarded as one of the best players in the world, Kylian Mbappe is only managing a rate of 2.4 per 90 in the Spanish top flight this term.
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Mohamed Salah during Wolves vs Liverpool
Photo by Ben Roberts – Danehouse/Getty Images
Most chances created in Premier League this season
If Ngumoha is finally given a proper run in the side moving forward, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him start to catch the likes of Szoboszlai and Wirtz very soon.
At present, the Hungarian has created the second most chances of any player in the English top flight this term, with Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes some way ahead of every other player in the division.
But even Fernandes (3.5 per 90) still isn’t carving out opportunities as often as the Liverpool teenager right now.
Player Chances created (per 90)
Bruno Fernandes 84 (3.5)
Dominik Szoboszlai 56 (2.1)
Declan Rice 53 (2.0)
Anton Stach 52 (2.4)
Bukayo Saka 50 (2.4)
Enzo Fernandez 45 (1.7)
Florian Wirtz 44 (2.1)
Pedro Neto 44 (1.8)
Morgan Gibbs-White 43 (1.6)
Phil Foden 42 (2.2)
Liverpool are now set to compete in the FA Cup and Champions League before returning to Premier League action against Tottenham Hotspur on March 15, with fans no doubt desperate to see Ngumoha feature.
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