Andoni Iraola's perfect start to his first pre-season in charge of Liverpool continued in the early hours of Thursday morning, as his side beat Wrexham 1-0 in New York City's Yankee Stadium.
The Welsh outfit, backed by actors Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, had already seen off Manchester United and Leeds United during their pre-season preparations, but a deflected goal by 17-year-old winger Rio Ngumoha in the 75th minute settled a scrappy game.
Ngumoha's Decisive Goal
Playing in an unfamiliar role on the right wing after his introduction in the second half, Ngumoha had a quiet performance by his own standards but nevertheless popped up with the decisive moment – his shot skewing off Lewis Brunt after a positive driving run took him into Wrexham's penalty area.
Iraola's decision to use Ngumoha from the right and 19-year-old Kieran Morrison from the left – despite both being more accustomed to the opposite flank – may have been an indication of the flexibility the Basque wants from his wide players.
Fowler's Praise
Speaking on The Official Liverpool FC Podcast after the game, Fowler said: "Well, [Ngumoha] is an exciting player, isn't he? That's why I asked him in terms of how the manager wants him to play. Because I think with Liverpool last year, we were probably maybe a bit predictable in terms of wingers coming in. But he's that player who can go both sides."
"So I was interested to see if the manager wanted him to go that way, because that's better obviously for the forward, whether it's [Hugo] Ekitike or [Alexander] Isak or whoever plays there eventually, but I think that's what Liverpool need. He's got that in his locker. You talk about players getting you off your seat – he's probably the most exciting player in that squad for the way he goes at players. He's very, very clever."
Thompson's Advice
Also appearing on the podcast was fellow Liverpool legend Phil Thompson, who offered one piece of advice for Ngumoha to take his game to the next level. "Even this, which is a friendly game, pre-season game," Thompson said, "did you see them banking up behind him, giving him the respect? And that's what he's done, he's earned that. And you've got to find a way to get around it. And it's little things like that. The final ball – he's still only young. That'd be the biggest thing that I would say to him: when you get there, get your head up as much as you can, try and find that ball, that killer ball to add to your game. Because he's such an exciting player."
Building Fitness
Last season under Arne Slot was a breakthrough campaign for Ngumoha, though the Dutchman looked to manage his minutes carefully as his body adapted to the rigours of senior football. That meant only nine starts in all competitions came the youngster's way despite much clamour from supporters to see him start more games. Fowler therefore identified building up his minutes as the next step for Ngumoha.
"That's why I was wanting him to tell us about the minutes he's playing," Fowler said. "Because at times last year, he probably wasn't as fit as what he should be – not as fit, that sounds terrible – but not at the fitness he should be for lasting 90 minutes. But he's an exciting player, and maybe when teams are tired you want him to come into his own then and he can upset teams a little bit more then."
