Rio Ngumoha by those who knew him growing up: 'He’s good enough to win the Ballon d’Or one day'

Like many onlookers at the time, Saul Isaksson-Hurst was convinced. “I used to tell his brother, ‘He’ll win the Ballon d’Or one day’,” the former Chelsea youth coach tells SPORTbible. “I still believe it. Rio Ngumoha has the potential to be one of the best in the world.”

Few are better placed to make such a claim.

With more than 10 years of academy-level experience spread across spells at Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs, Isaksson-Hurst has witnessed a conveyor belt of talent come and go over the years. Hundreds, if not thousands, have worked under his guidance.

He managed an exceptionally gifted group in his first season at Cobham, which included Jamal Musiala, Levi Colwill and Tino Livramento. Mikey Moore, who was recently compared to Neymar by teammate James Maddison, made an impression at Tottenham.

But to this day, nobody has come close to Ngumoha. “He was an outlier,” says Isaksson-Hurst, who coached the winger at under-nine level in 2016.

“His ability on the ball and the way he beat players with ease was on another level. I remember at a tournament in France, we were knocked out at the group stage, but he still managed to win the Player of the Tournament award. He's the best player I’ve coached by a country mile.”

Almost a decade on and the wider world was introduced to Ngumoha on Monday night, when he became the youngest goalscorer in Liverpool’s 133-year history after netting a 110th-minute winner on his Premier League debut.

A short time later, in the St James’s Park dressing room, Arne Slot heard one of his players say he would have taken a first touch before dispatching past Nick Pope to make it 3-2. For Ngumoha, those countless hours practising with his brother in the local Powerleague cages had prepared him for such a moment.

Isaksson-Hurst and Slot, amongst other top-level coaches, have helped stamp their mark on his development both tactically and technically. Those early days with Chelsea – and the more recent ones at Anfield – have played an important role in Ngumoha’s journey.

But what about those away from the glamour of top-flight football who shaped him into the player, and person, we see today?

Rio Ngumoha (bottom, third from left) represents the Newham district team when he was in Year 7.

On the concrete playground of Kingsford Community Secondary School in Newham, East London, hometown hero Rio Ngumoha is spoken about with great affection – and for good reason.

Shortly after joining Liverpool from a reluctant Chelsea last summer, the 16-year-old surprised his former classmates by making an appearance at their high school prom, two years after leaving them behind to attend the education programme at Cobham. It was a gesture that left a lasting impression.

“He came back for his school prom, which doesn’t always happen when kids move on to professional teams – especially if they’ve moved away from London,” said William Brobby, his former teacher and deputy head of year. “He took pictures with everyone, and that sums him up as a person. He’s very down to earth.”

Brobby was working at Kingsford when a “very polite” and “shy” Ngumoha let his feet do the talking at a trial for the local district side in Newham, a team he also managed. It is a day he will never forget.

“That was the first time we met,” Brobby tells SPORTbible, a week before his Premier League debut. “He came to the trial, and what struck me immediately was his technical ability with the ball. No one could get it off him. He was tricky, skilful, quick and sharp with a low centre of gravity, and he could go both ways.

“On top of that, he could score goals. That was the main thing. He was a goalscorer. There was one game where he scored a hat-trick of free-kicks, which won us the game. His ability from dead balls was outstanding.”

Because of his ability, Ngumoha would often come up against players a year above him at Kingsford, something he was more than used to while playing under Terry Bobie, his former youth coach at Chelsea’s development centre.

“Even back then, he stood out amongst the rest,” Bobie says about a six-year-old Ngumoha.

“Whenever he played against boys a year older, it was like a field day for him. He’s super talented, two-footed, and always impacts games. He’s the type of player who has everyone on their feet as soon as the ball comes to him.”

A few years later, Bobie and Ngumoha were reunited in 2021, when a team representing the borough of Newham won the London Youth Games.

“Some of the goals he scored at that tournament were just unbelievable,” Bobie recalls. “I wish cameras had been there because the clips would have blown up the internet. And don’t forget, he was playing a year above his age group. Rio was half the height of most of the players on the pitch, but he was doing things the above-average kids could only dream of.”

“There aren’t many words that do him justice,” he grins. “But I think the best way to describe Rio is special.”

Rio Ngumoha and William Brobby at Kingsford Community School's end-of-year prom.

Sir Alex Ferguson once said that hard work will always overcome natural talent when talent does not work hard enough.

Ask anyone who knew Rio Ngumoha growing up and they’ll say he had natural talent in abundance – a type of player who would, as Terry Bobie says, have the crowd on their feet in an instant.

But crucially, it was his relentless pursuit of perfection that made him unique. Kai Parkinson, a performance coach who works alongside some of the best young talent in today’s game, was working for the West Ham Foundation when a seven-year-old Ngumoha attended one of his sessions.

“You could see he had something very special,” Parkinson tells us. “I grew up playing with and coaching some generational talents, but I’d never seen someone as talented as Rio. What made him stand out was his ability to manipulate the ball, and everything he did was with extraordinary speed.

“This was down to the consistency and hours of training that his brother, James, would do with him away from Chelsea. He kept him sharp and humble, which has resulted in the achievements we are seeing today.”

James Ngumoha, the older brother of Rio, is mentioned by everybody we speak to for this piece.

Bobie used to run one-to-one sessions at the local Powerleague in Newham, and without fail, the brothers would be next door, working on the fundamentals. “I’d start at four o’clock in the afternoon and finish at eight in the evening. Rio would be there the whole time with his brother,” he says.

“Sometimes he’d even step into my cage to join a drill with another kid. What stood out was how demanding James was with him. They argued at times, but it always came from the right place. James saw Rio’s talent and wanted to push him to reach his potential. They worked relentlessly.

“Not many people saw that side of it, but it was every single day for years — week in, week out, day in, day out. From around 2010 all the way until 2018, and the consistency never wavered.”

Saul Isaksson-Hurst also mentions James’s immense contribution. “A lot of his development has to be credited to his brother,” the former Chelsea youth coach said. “He never gave anything other than 100 per cent.”

William Brobby agreed. “His brother put in a lot of work with him, and his mum has been a huge support too. Rio’s got a really strong network of people around him, and that’s made a big difference.”

Ngumoha worked tirelessly on his game in local Powerleague cages. Image credit: Saul Isaksson-Hurst

As well as hard work and talent, those who reach the very top must have an unwavering amount of confidence in their own ability, which is often born out of years of perseverance.

“I truly believe I can win the Ballon d’Or one day,” said Ngumoha in an interview with Lovell Soccer’s YouTube channel in 2024. “I want to be regarded as one of the best players to ever play football and be a legend of the game.”

It may be a bold statement at such an early stage of his career, but many agree with the sentiment.

“For me, there’s no doubt Rio can go on to earn an England cap,” says Bobie. “He’s only 16, and already training and playing with Liverpool’s first team. If he stays on this trajectory, with the right guidance, he’ll only get better.

“He said himself that he wants to win the Ballon d’Or. And honestly, why not? He’s already playing senior football at 16. If he continues like this, there’s every chance he could achieve it within the next 10 years.”

William Brobby, who watched Ngumoha shine at secondary school, believes it is written in the stars.

“I think he’s definitely going to get England caps, and honestly, I do think he’s good enough to win the Ballon d’Or one day,” he says. “Rio’s got all the talent; it’s just a matter of keeping his head down, breaking into the Liverpool first team, and putting numbers on the board.”

Ngumoha has already begun his pursuit of putting those numbers on the board, and people are taking notice.

Two goals and two assists in pre-season led Virgil van Dijk to describe him as “very special”, and earlier this month, Wayne Rooney named the teenager as his choice for breakout star of the season.

John Terry is still reeling about his departure from Chelsea, a year on. "There's always one you're gutted to lose, and he was the one."

Ngumoha scores on his Premier League debut. Image credit: Getty

Away from the limelight and Kai Parkinson, the coach who worked at West Ham, spoke to us about Ngumoha just days before the Newcastle game. With everything that's happened over the past 24 hours, his words hit different after Arne Slot’s show of faith.

“I always knew Rio would make his debut at a young age, as his ability speaks for itself. But as we all know, young players need an opportunity, and when they get the opportunity, they must take it,” he said.

“Rio has big ambitions and I’m sure he will fulfil every single one of them, as long as he is given the opportunity.”