‘You have to…’ – Steve Nicol declares whether Ngumoha should start v PSG after Saturday heroics

‘You have to…’ – Steve Nicol declares whether Ngumoha should start v PSG after Saturday heroics

Steve Nicol has made the case for Rio Ngumoha to be handed a starting berth for Liverpool in their Champions League quarter-final second leg against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday night.

The 17-year-old opened the scoring in the Reds’ 2-0 win over Fulham yesterday with an exquisite finish, and his overall performance during his 69 minutes on the pitch had many journalists and reporters waxing lyrical.

He’s yet to start a European match at first-team level for LFC, and some pundits have advised Arne Slot to be ‘careful’ with his use of the teenager, but the clamour for him to keep his place for the PSG game is set to grow after his outstanding display on Saturday.

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Nicol calls for Ngumoha to start against PSG

Nicol was asked on ESPN FC whether he thinks Ngumoha should start on Tuesday night, and his reply was very much in the affirmative.

The ex-Liverpool defender said: “Absolutely. Right now Liverpool are searching for positives, and there’s no question that Ngumoha is a positive. He scares defenders.

“If you go back to the tried-and-trusted Gakpo, Ekitike through the middle and Mo on the right, then I can guarantee that whoever’s playing right-back doesn’t mind playing against Gakpo. If you play Ngumoha, the full-back won’t know much about Ngumoha. He doesn’t want to play against him.

“The kid’s already scored a goal, and he’s involved in the second goal as well, so there’s absolutely no way you should not be starting Ngumoha on one side. I think you have to start Salah in this game, particularly because he scored a goal [v Fulham], and Ekitike should be through the middle.”

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Ngumoha would like rise to the challenge of taking on PSG

We understand why some people might preach caution with the use of Ngumoha, especially in a do-or-die Champions League clash against a team of PSG’s quality, but we believe that he and Liverpool stand to gain a lot more than they could lose from him starting on Tuesday night.

Every time he’s played for the Reds’ first team so far, the 17-year-old has looked totally fearless and is embracing the pressure which comes with performing on the big stage rather than being intimidated by it.

Slot’s team have a 2-0 deficit to overturn in midweek, so the head coach simply must go with the attacking setup which is most likely to secure the scoreline that we need. Whilst we get that it’s important to avoid a mauling, the least LFC can do is have a proper go rather than meekly accepting their fate.

If Ngumoha starts on Tuesday, he’d give Liverpool a thrust on the left flank which could make life difficult for Achraf Hakimi, who won’t have come up against the teenager before.

In our opinion, the youngster can’t have done anything more to prove his case for a starting berth against PSG. We agree with Nicol on this one.