Everyone wants Rio Ngumoha to play more but Liverpool have a duty of care to the youngster. What does history tell us about young stars who burst onto the scene?
I really don't want to see Rio start EPL or UCL matches. He's more effective as an impact sub against tired legs and minds. Mo and Cody have had bad seasons but Rio doesn't fix that problem.
He did start 3x against weaker competition and didn't really stand out. Given the travel to Istanbul, Rio will probably start Friday night. If we win that one, he probably starts the FAC QTR bc Cody won't return from int'l break until Wed AM. Since the turn of the New Year, Arne has played him as a late sub in 50% of the league matches. That's at least another 5 appearances (15 total) in the league.
4-5 starts in domestic cups,15 appearances in the league & 2 appearances in UCL is a sensible amount of playing time for a 17yo.
Just to add to this after the match at Wolves, Ngumoha's cameo in that game saw him become Liverpool's joint-top player for take-ons and chances created in open play (with one of them an Opta-defined big chance), plus he had a shot on target. He should've done more to try to prevent the winning goal but his on-ball work continues to thrive.
Nice stuff Andrew!
I really don't want to see Rio start EPL or UCL matches. He's more effective as an impact sub against tired legs and minds. Mo and Cody have had bad seasons but Rio doesn't fix that problem.
He did start 3x against weaker competition and didn't really stand out. Given the travel to Istanbul, Rio will probably start Friday night. If we win that one, he probably starts the FAC QTR bc Cody won't return from int'l break until Wed AM. Since the turn of the New Year, Arne has played him as a late sub in 50% of the league matches. That's at least another 5 appearances (15 total) in the league.
4-5 starts in domestic cups,15 appearances in the league & 2 appearances in UCL is a sensible amount of playing time for a 17yo.
We’ve seen too many youngsters burn out before their time ….slow and steady
Just to add to this after the match at Wolves, Ngumoha's cameo in that game saw him become Liverpool's joint-top player for take-ons and chances created in open play (with one of them an Opta-defined big chance), plus he had a shot on target. He should've done more to try to prevent the winning goal but his on-ball work continues to thrive.