Chelsea are believed to be “furious” to see one of their brightest talents Rio Ngumoha leave their academy to join Premier League rivals Liverpool.
Fabrizio Romano initially reported that the Reds were trying to sign the 15-year-old and a transfer reporter confirmed on Wednesday that everything was in place for the boy to play his football on Merseyside during the 2024/25 campaign.
This has left Chelsea furious, reports the Liverpool Echo, at losing one of their academy’s brightest talents.
The report reveals that Liverpool have been tracking Ngumoha for some time and were determined to complete a move for the England U-16 international in this transfer window.
The 15-year-old is expected to make his debut with Liverpool’s Under-18s and if his progress is deemed sufficient, there is a good chance the youngster will be fast-tracked to the Reds’ Under-21s.
There is a lot of hype around Ngumoha as he was named player of the year when Chelsea Under-16s were crowned national champions last October and in January, his progress was rewarded with a debut for the Blues’ Under-21s.
Chelsea will be entitled to compensation from Liverpool for developing the striker so far, but that will not soften the blow of losing a potential star.
Why did Rio Ngumoha change Chelsea to Liverpool?
It is not difficult to see why Ngumoha decided to leave Chelsea to join Liverpool as the 15-year-old player has thought carefully about the direction he wants to take in his career.
The Merseyside club are known for giving young talent a chance and that was evident last season when several youngsters were promoted to the first team by Jurgen Klopp and even featured in the Carabao Cup final against the London club.
The current ownership at Stamford Bridge is buying a lot of young players and it doesn’t look like they will stop anytime soon. This will hamper the progress of the Premier League club’s young talent, despite many breaking into Chelsea’s senior squad last season under Mauricio Pochettino.
This may have played a big role in Ngumoha’s decision and led to Liverpool getting one of the best young players in England.
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