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What Andoni Iraola has been working on behind the scenes to make Rio Ngumoha even better for Liverpool
Brentford v Liverpool - Premier League 2026/27
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images

Rio Ngumoha was one of the biggest reasons for Liverpool turning Saturday’s match against Brentford in their favour.

The 18-year-old was brought on five minutes into the second-half as a replacement for the injured Jeremie Frimpong, with Andoni Iraola making the bold decision to move Victor Munoz to right-back and stick Ngumoha at right wing. It worked fantastically well.

Ngumoha may feel he should have started at the Gtech Community Stadium after a stellar showing in midweek against LASK, but he did not let that affect his performance and he shone once again. His improvement on the right side is plain for all to see, and it has now been revealed that Iraola has been working specifically with Ngumoha in training to make him an even better player.

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Liverpool come from behind to beat 9-man Brentford! What were your main takeaways from the game? 🤔 We were clinging on a bit at the end…

Iraola attempts to improve Ngumoha’s decision-making

Ngumoha has always been a supremely talented young player, but understandably, he has looked raw at times when playing for Liverpool.

That has changed in his last two performances, and the former Chelsea youngster has stepped up a level while playing from the right. If he continues like this, it will be difficult for Iraola to leave him out.

As ever, the hard work shows on the pitch, but is built on the training ground, and according to The Athletic, Iraola has been spending time with Ngumoha to improve his decision-making both on and off the ball.

There has reportedly been a big focus on how the teenager can help Liverpool without possession, and the Reds’ boss is said to have been focusing on improving Ngumoha’s duel-winning, pressing high and tracking back.

Iraola and his coaches are claimed to have liked what they have seen from the wonderkid, and have been impressed by his willingness to learn and the way in which he has gone about fixing some of the issues in his game.

The Spanish coach is said to have challenged Ngumoha to prove that he can play on the right as a way of dealing with the competition for places at Liverpool, and despite a rocky start, it now looks to have paid off in a big way.

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