Liverpool's young winger Rio Ngumoha has revealed his belief that he would one day play for England, following his competitive debut for the Three Lions this week. The 18-year-old featured in England's 2-0 win against Czechia, becoming the nation's third-youngest competitive debutant behind only Wayne Rooney (17 years and 156 days) and Jude Bellingham (17 years and 269 days).
Speaking to ITV Sport, Ngumoha said: "I definitely had the confidence and the belief to think that I could definitely wear an England shirt at 18. Did I think it'd be the first camp? Maybe not, but I definitely knew one day I'd play when I was pretty young."
Ngumoha's ambitions for the future
The Liverpool winger drew inspiration from Bellingham and Rooney, expressing his desire to emulate their achievements. "Jude is already probably the best midfielder in the world at this point. He definitely believed he would play for England at 17, same as Wayne Rooney. What he did for his club, his country, hopefully, I can do the same. It's going to be a good journey, I think," he added.
Ngumoha's debut came during the international break, with several Liverpool players representing their countries in the Nations League group stage. Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai and Milos Kerkez were all in action for their respective nations.
Klopp's first win with Germany
Jurgen Klopp secured his first win as Germany boss on Thursday, with Florian Wirtz playing a starring role in a 2-0 victory over Serbia. The Liverpool midfielder hit the post in the 39th minute, with Tom Bischof netting the rebound, before scoring a stunning goal himself in the second half to double the lead and net his first goal of the 2026/27 season.
Wirtz was handed the captain's armband after Serge Gnabry came off in the second half. The attacking midfielder credited Klopp's setup - with Aleksandar Pavlovic and Bischof playing behind him - for allowing him to flourish.
"We got almost everything right today. Wearing the captain's armband is something special. It makes you proud. I just tried to give everything I had on the pitch. The players around me also made it very easy for me today. There was a lot of movement in our game, and we were all eager to play football. That makes it easier to shine," Wirtz said after the match.
The £116million man has had a difficult start to the season, but his confidence-boosting display could be just what the 23-year-old needs to finally announce himself at Anfield.
