via Reuters
While the focus for Liverpool is to ensure their first team is strong enough to be genuine contenders to win the Premier League and the Champions League, work is also ongoing to make sure they have a great team in the future too.
Liverpool have shown they are willing to spend more than £100m on the likes of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola in the last two summer transfer windows, but they also pride themselves on bringing through players from the academy into the first-team too.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones and Conor Bradley have done exactly that in recent years, and while the former duo have now left Anfield, there is a new wave of talent starting to impose themselves on the first team.
Rio Ngumoha has only just celebrated his 18th birthday but has already made 35 senior appearances for the Reds, while we have seen game time for the likes of Lewis Koumas, Trey Nyoni and James McConnell this term.
Liverpool chiefs have been busy bringing in some promising talent in 2026, including Lucca Brughmans and Ifeanyi Ndukwe, and hopes will be high that they can have a big future in the first-team.
The Merseysiders also saw some highly-rated prospects leave too though, as 16-year-old Vincent Joseph left for Arsenal, while Isaac Konde joined Manchester United.
Liverpool's Youth Signings in 2026:
Lucca Brughmans (age 18)
Mor Talla N'diaye (age 18)
Djylian N'Guessan (age 18)
Ifeanyi Ndukwe (age 18)
Armin Pecsi (age 21)
Samuel Martinez (age 17)
Patrik Farkas (age 19)
The Reds did manage to tie down another wonderkid in Joshua Abe though, with the 16-year-old agreeing a scholarship in the summer that will become a three-year professional contract when he turns 17 in July.
Named in the Guardian's Next Generation 2026 list, it's suggested that the Warrington-born teenager was being offered £40,000-50,000-a-week deals to leave the club, with Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United trying to prise him away from Anfield.
He actually featured on the club's pre-season tour of the USA in the summer before suffering a shoulder injury which required surgery.
He will be hoping to get a first-team opportunity sooner rather than later, just like Ngumoha did when he was his age.
Joshua Abe Plays Like Sadio Mane
Jurgen Klopp and Sadio Mane
Jurgen Klopp and Sadio Mane
Given Liverpool don't really have a specialist right-winger following the exit of Mohamed Salah in the summer, there might be more chances for Abe this season.
The 16-year-old is a left-footed winger who prefers to play from the right, where he can cut in and use his stronger foot, like we saw Salah do for so many years at Anfield.
Abe is very similar stylistically to the player who thrived on the opposite side to the Egyptian, Sadio Mane, according to Liverpool World, because of his explosive pace and his strength in one-v-one situations against opposition full-backs.
Abe's Record for Liverpool U18s:
11 appearances
8 goals
3 assists
The teenager is backing up his skills with a decent goal return too, with eight goals in 11 appearances for the club's Under-18 side to date.
His boss Simon Wiles has been hugely impressed by what he has seen from the 16-year-old, who is viewed as one of the most highly-rated prospects in the country, according to the Guardian.
Wiles told Redmen TV: “You can see him growing with confidence and the quality that he’s got.
He’s got a real knack for coming inside and hitting the back of the net.
"He’s a real talent and it’s really exciting working with him. Josh is in a really good place.”
Once he returns to full fitness, which is expected to be soon, Liverpool fans should look out for Abe making a push for first-team minutes.
Former Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola celebrates after Premier League match
Former Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola celebrates after Premier League match