Liverpool's Rio Ngumoha Credits Barcelona Star Lamine Yamal For His Rise To Fame

Liverpool's Rio Ngumoha has had a rapid rise to top-level football, via a path that has become more common in recent years.

Players like Ngumoha, Arsenal's Max Dowman, Chelsea's Estevao, to name a few, have all followed a similar route to where they are now.

They all got promoted through their academies, making a strong first impression on the first team, both in training and in the opportunities they were given in games, and over time, being trusted more and more by their respective managers, becoming established senior pros.

But undoubtedly, the biggest young superstar in world football right now is World Cup winner and Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal.

Clearly, Lamine Yamal is a much more established superstar compared to Rio Ngumoha, and his rise to becoming the biggest name at Barcelona is very similar to when Lionel Messi broke onto the scene.

But in terms of the way the two players play football, the similarities are there for all to see.

The pair of them are wingers who like to attack the space in front of them, and have a fearless mentality when it comes to taking on their defender, twisting inside and outside, more often than not getting past their marker.

Additionally, they are both of a similar age profile, with Rio Ngumoha being 18 years old and Lamine Yamal being a year older.

Now, as previously mentioned, Yamal is further along in his development, with the Spanish forward having added a high quantity of goals and assists to his game, something that Rio Ngumoha needs to work on in the months and years ahead.

Speaking while on international duty, Rio Ngumoha explained how he believes that the high-profile rise of Lamine Yamal over the last few years has changed the way young players play football with more creativity and a freedom to show clubs what they have got:

Lamine Yamal has undoubtedly made football clubs around the world change what they look for in young, up-and-coming talents, with the focus shifting more towards players that have a fearless nature to them.

And that has aided the likes of Rio Ngumoha to be signed by Liverpool, then allowed to show what he is capable of in the first team, with the club giving the England international freedom to express himself on the pitch, while still contributing to the team's efforts to win every game.

Comment Below: Do You Think Lamine Yamal Has Changed The World Of Football For Young Players, Allowing The Likes Of Rio Ngumoha To Shine?