People take photos of the Ballon d’Or received by Andriy Shevchenko exhibited in the Taras Shevchenko Park
Photo by Yan Dobronosov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
Harry Kane achieved a dream for every footballer in October when he was awarded the Ballon d’Or to recognise his remarkable goalscoring exploits during the 2025/26 campaign.
The golden trophy has become a much bigger consideration over the past two decades, with clubs even including ‘Ballon d’Or clauses’ into transfer negotiations these days.
For young players like Rio Ngumoha, being crowned as the best footballer on the planet is right up there with winning the game’s biggest trophies as a legitimate goal. Most will not see that dream realised, but according to Jarell Quansah, his former Liverpool teammate Ngumoha could be an exception.
Andoni Iraola has the same number of points after 10 games as Arne Slot did last season (18). Have Liverpool improved or still not performing?
Give us your thoughts…
There are clear flaws with Liverpool but I actually think they’re ahead of schedule under Iraola. I expected a slower start
Slot's haul was higher than it should have been last season though, right? Those opening five or so games masked a lot of issues before it caught up with them. Iraola's team look to be building towards something, rather than just getting the rub of the green before a decline!
It took him a while to get going with Bournemouth too tbf. I rememebr his side came to Goodison and thy were the worst id seen in a long time, a few months later they were flying
Quansah backs Ngumoha as a Ballon d’Or candidate
Liverpool know just how good Ngumoha could be, having moved heaven and earth to sensationally pluck him from Chelsea in 2024.
The 18-year-old has developed as expected since then, and is now a fully-fledged first-team member at both Liverpool and the England national team.
Quansah saw Ngumoha up close during his final season with the Reds in 2024/25, and when asked by BBC 5 Live to name a young player who could be a future Ballon d’Or winner, the 23-year-old had an easy answer at the ready.
“I don’t want to put anyone too high like that, but an outstanding, outstanding talent is Rio Ngumoha,” he said.
“I trained with him at Liverpool a lot. He was very young when he came to Liverpool. He’s so sharp, so quick. I think the first thing most lads said when he came here [to the England senior team] is that he’s so brave at doing his one v ones, and he’s definitely someone who has potential to be on that level.”
Ben White & Jarell Quansah pick the young players who could win a future Ballon d’Or 👀🏆#BBCFootball #BallonDor #ThreeLions pic.twitter.com/ouN5339D7g
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) November 12, 2026
READ MORE: Liverpool are getting ready to ruthlessly axe five first-team players
Liverpool pushing to renew Ngumoha’s contract
It is always pleasing to hear just how highly other players rate Ngumoha, and having been on fire so far this season the teenager really deserves his praise.
The one concern for Liverpool supporters will be that he is yet to sign professional terms with the Reds, and appears to be taking his time in negotiations over his first proper contract.
There have recently been reports that Bayern Munich are still keeping tabs on Ngumoha’s situation, and it is clear that if the Reds fumble contract talks with the former Chelsea starlet there will be a whole host of clubs ready to swoop him up.
Though fans will be getting nervous, it has been claimed that Liverpool are pushing hard for Ngumoha to stay, and with two years still to run on his original contract, there is plenty of time for the Reds to ram home their advantage with Rio.
If they can, and Ngumoha continues to grow as Quansah – and just about everyone else in football – expects that he will, it would be no great surprise to see him follow Kane and take the Ballon d’Or home in the future.