Gakpo Nets Brace in Reds' Pre-Season Win

Liverpool's summer signings made their Anfield debuts, but 16-year-old sensation Rio Ngumoha stole the spotlight with a dazzling performance in the Reds' pre-season double-header against Athletic Bilbao.

Ngumoha's Breakout Performance

In an unusual scheduling move, Liverpool played two matches against Bilbao - with their second-string squad facing off at 17:00 BST and the first team meeting at 20:00. The young England U-17 forward announced himself with a goal and assist within the first five minutes of the early game, which Liverpool won 4-1.

Ngumoha's remarkable display included:

• A stunning 20-yard curler in just the second minute
• An assist for Darwin Nunez three minutes later
• Consistent threat with his dribbling and creativity
• A standing ovation when substituted in the second half

Former Liverpool defender Gary Gillespie praised the teenager: "He is such an excellent prospect. The difficulty is managing expectations but it's hard to put a lid on it."

First-Team Debuts and Gakpo's Mixed Night

In the later match, manager Arne Slot fielded £263.5m worth of new signings:

• Midfielder Florian Wirtz (£100m)
• Forward Hugo Ekitike
• Full-backs Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez
• Goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili

Cody Gakpo had an eventful night with two goals for Liverpool and an unfortunate own goal in their 3-2 victory. Mohamed Salah opened the scoring but later missed a penalty.

Youth Opportunity in Transitional Period

With significant changes to Liverpool's attacking options:

• The tragic loss of Diogo Jota
• Luis Diaz's departure to Bayern Munich
• Potential exit for Darwin Nunez to Saudi Arabia

Ngumoha could find first-team opportunities opening up.

The 16-year-old, who joined from Chelsea last summer, remains grounded: "I'm not trying to rush because I'm still only young. I just want to show the manager what I can do and not get too complacent."

Slot's Rebuilding Project Shows Promise

After winning the Premier League in his debut season with minimal signings, Slot is now shaping his own squad. Early signs are positive:

• Wirtz showed flashes of creativity in midfield
• Frimpong offered attacking threat from right-back
• Ekitike was lively in attack

Defensive depth remains a concern, with midfielder Wataro Endo having to fill in at center-back due to injuries to Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez.

Slot remained positive: "In both games we created a lot of chances and scored seven goals. That's very pleasing to see." However, he acknowledged the need to improve set-piece defending ahead of the Community Shield against Crystal Palace.