Rio Ngumoha left speechless after Jude Bellingham's speech in England dressing room

Rio Ngumoha was left "speechless" after being handed his first England cap by Jude Bellingham following England's 1-0 win over New Zealand.

The highly-rated Liverpool forward, who has joined England's World Cup camp in Florida to help with preparation, made his senior Three Lions debut on Saturday after being introduced as a second-half substitute.

At the age of 17 years and 281 days, Ngumoha became the fifth-youngest player in history to appear for England, with only Theo Walcott, Wayne Rooney, Jude Bellingham and James Prinsep having reached the milestone at a younger age.

It was an afternoon to remember for the teenager. In fact, he earned the Player of the Match award following a typically direct display on the right wing.

After the full-time whistle, Ngumoha was presented with his England cap by Bellingham, who delivered a classy speech in front of the dressing room before handing the award to a "speechless" Ngumoha.

"Congratulations on an amazing debut," the Real Madrid midfielder said.

"I think we all enjoyed watching it, and obviously you're going to have a really bright future at your club and hopefully with us as well. It's a pleasure to give it [the cap] to you because I know there'll be so many more. So, congratulations."

"I'm speechless!" 🦁❤️ pic.twitter.com/RSSzt672L2

— England (@England) June 7, 2026

Ngumoha, clearly taken aback by the moment, replied: "Thank you everyone. I'm happy. I'm speechless. I just want to say thank you. We keep going."

Rio Ngumoha cannot play at World Cup if England need to make late replacement

The 17-year-old forward is one of four young players Thomas Tuchel brought to Florida alongside his 26-man World Cup squad, with Alex Scott, Josh King and Ethan Nwaneri also getting the call-up.

However, Ngumoha will not be able to play any part in this summer's tournament.

FIFA rules allow squads to make changes ahead of a tournament but only up to 24 hours before a team's opening match in case of injury or sickness.

Meanwhile, the replacement player must be on a country's 55-man provisional squad list, meaning if any one of England's 26 picks up an injury or falls ill before their Group L opener against Croatia on June 17, Ngumoha cannot step in.

The only player from England's pre-tournament extras eligible to be called up is Bournemouth's Alex Scott, who was included in the provisional 55.

"I am happy that these guys are with us, especially Alex who was on the list of 55 and had a disappointing phone call as well that he didn't make the first cut," said Tuchel last month. "His reaction was outstanding. It showed me his character."

Ngumoha is still eligible to play in the final friendly game against Costa Rica.