New York: Ngumoha’s deflected strike secures Liverpool win over Wrexham
Liverpool secures pre-season victory
Liverpool secured a victory against Wrexham in a recent pre-season friendly, with a deflected goal from Rio Ngumoha. The match, held at Yankee Stadium, saw Liverpool claim their second win in two pre-season games under new head coach Andoni Iraola. Ngumoha’s decisive shot in the 75th minute looped in off Wrexham defender Lewis Brunt, satisfying the majority of the 42,204 attendees.
The game was attended by Wrexham‘s co-owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. Despite the presence of the Hollywood figures, the match was described as a quiet friendly, with few significant exchanges at the baseball stadium.
Travel disruptions and experimental squad
Liverpool‘s preparations for the match were impacted by travel disruptions. The team’s flight from Chicago was cancelled due to poor weather conditions in the New York area, delaying their arrival until the day of the game. Players and staff checked into their Midtown hotel around midday, and were scheduled to fly back to Chicago immediately after the match.
The travel issues were part of broader disruptions to Liverpool‘s pre-season plans, which included heavy rain and thunderstorms leaving New York under a flood watch. This also affected an event planned for Tuesday evening in New York to launch Liverpool‘s new Adidas away kit, which some first-team players were unable to attend.
Due to these circumstances, and the absence of several key players, Iraola opted for an experimental side. Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak, and Ryan Gravenberch did not travel from Liverpool‘s training base, as the game came too early in their pre-season preparations following their post-World Cup holidays. Additionally, Joe Gomez was injured and Federico Chiesa was absent due to illness. Six of Liverpool‘s starting line-up had no prior Premier League experience.
Youth prospects on display
The emphasis on youth provided an opportunity for highly-rated prospects to feature. Joshua Abe, a right winger, started the match and is considered a bright prospect. Abe had received numerous offers before committing to Liverpool earlier this month when he turned 16. Manchester City, Manchester United, and Chelsea had all shown interest in the Warrington-born England youth international, with reported deals worth £40,000-a-week on offer. He agreed to scholarship terms in June, with a three-year professional contract set to follow on his 17th birthday next July.
Abe had an early chance to score in his first senior start for Liverpool when he was released by Harvey Elliott. However, a heavy first touch allowed Wrexham‘s goalkeeper, Danny Ward, to make a save. Iraola‘s initial front line included Calum Scanlon, Lewis Koumas, and Abe. Koumas also had an attempt from distance and a penalty shout that was not awarded. Dominik Szoboszlai made some surging midfield runs during the game.
Wrexham, being further along in their pre-season schedule, showed a physical edge as the first half progressed. Their first competitive game is scheduled for a week on Friday against Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup. Sam Smith and Callum Doyle had chances but were unable to trouble Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Substitutions at half-time saw Ngumoha, Kieran Morrison, Kostas Tsimikas, and Curtis Jones replace Abe, Scanlon, Milos Kerkez, and Trey Nyoni. Minutes after the restart, Elliott had a shot from 20 yards that was saved by Ward, who also denied Szoboszlai from distance. Wrexham substitute Nathan Broadhead also had a powerful drive saved by Mamardashvili, and late chances for Brunt and Kieffer Moore to equalise were miscued from close range.
Source: theguardian.com
