NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe after a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. Liverpool won 4-2. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe after a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. Liverpool won 4-2. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Liverpool will be unable to call on new teenage centre-back Ifeanyi Ndukwe this season, increasing the pressure on the club to add depth in the transfer window.
Standing at 6’6″, Ndukwe has a commanding presence despite being only 18, and supporters got a first glimpse after he replaced Joe Gomez in the first pre-season friendly under Andoni Iraola.
A £2.6 million signing from Austria Vienna, Ndukwe arrived this summer and quickly joined sessions under the new head coach before travelling with the squad to the US.
The 18-year-old made his first-team debut for Austria Vienna towards the end of last season, and while a loan was mooted, there was also the potential for him to add first-team depth.
However, the Athletic‘s James Pearce has reported that Liverpool will not be able to call on Ndukwe this season as “he doesn’t meet the required points total to get a work permit in the UK.”
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Ifeanyi Ndukwe (L) challenges Sunderland's Wilson Isidor during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Ifeanyi Ndukwe (L) challenges Sunderland's Wilson Isidor during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
It means a loan will beckon for the impressive teenager, who is bound to attract a list of suitors with increased game time in the US after Joe Gomez‘s injury.
The inability for Liverpool to plan with Ndukwe this season, however, is a blow with Iraola’s ranks in central defence depleted by Jeremy Jacquet‘s cautious handling and Giovanni Leoni‘s rehab from an ACL tear.
While it does not change the club’s need for reinforcements – as they were already required – it deprives Liverpool of a viable internal option should they need to call upon academy ranks throughout the 2026/27 campaign.
Why Ifeanyi Ndukwe does not have a UK work permit
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Ifeanyi Ndukwe during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Ifeanyi Ndukwe during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
To play for a Premier League side, a player must receive a Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) from the FA, which a club then uses to obtain a work visa from the Home Office.
To qualify automatically, a player needs to score 15 points across several categories or meet senior international appearance criteria.
As Ndukwe’s senior minutes were predominantly accrued in Austria’s lower tiers and youth ranks rather than regular top-flight football, he falls short of the needed points total.
A loan move is, therefore, a necessary pathway to build his points total for the Premier League.
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Joe Gomez (L) Is greeted by head coach Andoni Iraola as he is substituted off during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
NASHVILLE, USA - Saturday, July 25, 2026: Liverpool's Joe Gomez (L) Is greeted by head coach Andoni Iraola as he is substituted off during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and AFC Sunderland at the Nashville SC Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Liverpool would be looking for a club in band 1-3, which includes the Bundesliga, Eredivisie, Ligue 1, or one that plays in UEFA competitions, to accumulate the points he needs.
As for why fellow 18-year-old Mor Talla Ndiaye seemingly has not faced the same restriction, Liverpool likely utilised one of their few ESC (Elite Significant Contribution) slots when he arrived late last season.
Liverpool could theoretically do the same with Ndukwe, but if their ESC slots are already filled or held for first-team signings, he cannot be registered via that route.
That leaves a European loan as the solution to secure his permit for next season.
Football – Pre-Season – Liverpool USA Tour Day 6 – Liverpool FC v AFC Sunderland
Football – Pre-Season – Liverpool USA Tour Day 6 – Liverpool FC v AFC Sunderland
Iraola Wirtz
Iraola Wirtz
2026-07-23-025-Liverpool_Pre-Season_Day_4
CHICAGO, USA - Thursday, July 23, 2026: Liverpool's Jeremy Jacquet departs the team hotel in Chicago on day four of the club's pre-season tour of America. The team play friendly games in Nashville, New York and Chicago as they prepare for the start of the new 2026/27 Premier League season. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)