{"id":529199,"date":"2026-04-13T21:28:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T21:28:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/529199\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T21:28:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T21:28:13","slug":"arne-slot-addresses-whether-rio-ngumoha-is-ready-for-the-biggest-stage-against-psg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/529199\/","title":{"rendered":"Arne Slot addresses whether Rio Ngumoha is ready for the biggest stage against PSG"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\/ Add as preferred source on Google <\/a> <\/p>\n

Ever since Rio Ngumoha\u2019s performance against Fulham, there have been non-stop calls for him to start against PSG. <\/p>\n

Arne Slot sat down to address the media ahead of Tuesday night\u2019s second leg, and the 17-year-old\u2019s readiness for a game of this magnitude was one of the first questions put to him. <\/p>\n

Fans and pundits are all saying Ngumoha should start against PSG<\/a>, seeing him as a potentially decisive factor in a game that Liverpool<\/a> must win by at least two goals. Naturally, the Dutchman gave no indication as to who he will start, but nonetheless backed the young winger to make an impact if he does get on the pitch. <\/p>\n

PICK YOUR DREAM FRONT THREE \ud83d\udc40 <\/p>\n

Two sides stacked with attacking firepower \ud83d\udd25<\/p>\n

\"PSGPhoto by MB Media\/Getty Images Arne Slot waxes lyrical about Liverpool starlet Rio Ngumoha<\/p>\n

There has been constant debate all season about how much Ngumoha<\/a> is being used in this Liverpool side. <\/p>\n

Many would like to see him take Cody Gakpo\u2019s starting role on a permanent basis, but the manager has been hesitant to land so much responsibility on his young shoulders. <\/p>\n

But Slot knows the talent he is dealing with, as he made clear in his press conference<\/a>. <\/p>\n

He said: \u201cHe can cope with this type of game because of his personality, he doesn\u2019t get distracted. Everyone who knows his history more knows he has had a lot of expectations for many years, and he\u2019s always been able to focus on football and become better and stronger.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt 17 he has already had multiple starts for Liverpool. And the second thing is his quality. At the highest level he is able to take 1v1s on and make it difficult for the defenders he is facing.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has done a very good job in managing up to now but it\u2019s a good thing to have so many experienced players around him which he has.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"rIOPhoto by Daniel Chesterton\/Offside\/Offside via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Slot has no doubts about Ngumoha\u2019s ability<\/a>. His reserved approach is one taken out of caution and care. The teenager has a long career ahead of him, and risking overworking him is not a good idea. <\/p>\n

That said, he does look like Liverpool\u2019s best option on the left right now. Most will be hoping to see his name on the teamsheet on Tuesday night. That doesn\u2019t mean Slot will take the gamble, but we should expect to see him make some sort of impact, especially if Liverpool are still chasing the game late on.<\/p>\n

Arne Slot knows what needs to be done vs PSG <\/p>\n

On chasing a result, Slot<\/a> made it clear that the players will need to be locked in on both sides of the ball. <\/p>\n

As he explains: \u201cWe have to find the perfect balance between being offensive and not be offensive. You need to have the ball, and you need to do so many things well before your attackers can attack.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why the history of this club shows a lot of players who are very good offensively but do their defensive job as well. Both teams like to have the ball. They had 76% last time, that\u2019s the first thing we have to change. When you have it then it is nice to have an attacking threat on the pitch, which is what we will have tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do you still think Liverpool can turn the quarter-final around at Anfield? <\/p>\n

2-0 down vs PSG, it’s going to be some ask from here\u2026<\/p>\n

\"JeremiePhoto by FRANCK FIFE \/ AFP via Getty Images <\/p>\n

Turning this tie around will take a monumental effort, and the kind of performance we haven\u2019t seen this season. A perfect one. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s not been a hopeful kind of season at Anfield<\/a>, but there is one more chance to salvage a European dream. It starts with the first whistle. <\/p>\n

Join Our Newsletter<\/p>\n

Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Add as preferred source on Google Ever since Rio Ngumoha\u2019s performance against Fulham, there have been non-stop calls…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":529200,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[1969,59,27079,101,397,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-529199","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-arne-slot","tag-gb","tag-rio-ngumoha","tag-sports","tag-uefa-champions-league","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/529199","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=529199"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/529199\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/529200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=529199"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=529199"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=529199"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}