In his latest column, John Aldridge ponders the impact of Rio Ngumoha at Liverpool and looks ahead to the Premier League trip to Aston Villa
Cole Palmer of Chelsea is challenged by Rio Ngumoha of Liverpool during the Premier League match on May 9 2026
Cole Palmer of Chelsea is challenged by Rio Ngumoha of Liverpool during the Premier League match on May 9 2026(Image: Gaspafotos/MB Media/Getty Images)
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It’s fair to say Liverpool supporters are quite taken by Rio Ngumoha. But what does that tell us about this Reds team?
For a start, I’ve always said that if you’re good enough, you are old enough. And it’s clear Ngumoha is blessed with a lot of natural talent.
However, the onus and expectation on injecting the attack with pace and trickery should not be placed at the feet of a 17-year-old, regardless of potential.
The Anfield crowd, though, hasn’t been given many other options of late.
What is exciting about Ngumoha is that you don’t know what he’s going to do. He is raw and is a bit of a throwback to the Jurgen Klopp days in that he just approaches every game at full pelt.
It’s that kind of player who gets fans out of their seats and creates a buzz, as well as giving opposing defenders the realisation they are in for a tough day at the office.
Luis Diaz offered that last season but has now gone, while Mohamed Salah has lost much of his pace and Cody Gakpo has a different skillset.
The booing of Ngumoha's substitution may have been misplaced given the youngster wasn’t fit to continue, but it wouldn’t have happened in any case had the rest of the attack been anywhere near as lively.
Jeremie Frimpong has pace but didn’t impress on the right wing. Frimpong was good when he returned from his second injury absence this season, but hasn’t really been near it since his latest one.
He’ll hope to be in better shape next year, as will Alexander Isak, another player bought with speed in mind.
Florian Wirtz is different, and there’s no doubt Liverpool missed his creativity on Saturday. I expect him to be better next year overall, and will benefit from finding a comfortable position and, if he’s going to be the number 10, having two players best suited to playing behind him.
Should Wirtz be the main attacking midfielder, he needs to score more goals. Something like one in three should be attainable for a player of his standing.
Liverpool haven’t really had enough firepower from all around the front four and they won’t improve until that is addressed.
Villa not the worry
There’s already a bit of discussion about whether or not Aston Villa will be distracted on Friday by their imminent Europa League final date.
But Liverpool shouldn’t be worrying about them. The game will be much more about what the Reds are capable of doing.
I watched Villa destroy Nottingham Forest in their Europa League semi-final second leg last week and they were tremendous. It was a brilliant performance.
However, I also saw most of their draw at Burnley on Sunday and they struggled. It was very much a case of after the Lord Mayor’s show.
You’d expect Villa to not quite be at full strength for Liverpool’s visit, but whichever players they put out it will be a strong side and it won’t be easy for the Reds. Nothing has been easy this season.
Liverpool would take the draw now and give themselves the chance to at least go out on a high by beating Brentford at home on the final day.
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