Van Dijk backs 'electric' Ngumoha as Liverpool starlet eyes Brighton start

Virgil van Dijk has lauded Rio Ngumoha as "pretty electric" and insisted the teenage forward still has "much more to come" after a stunning Champions League display midweek.

Ngumoha, 18, starred as Liverpool beat Villarreal 4-3 in the Champions League, a result that made it three wins from three to open the Reds' European campaign. The performance has ramped up calls for the youngster to be handed a Premier League start when Liverpool host Brighton this weekend.

A record-breaking night in Europe

Aged 18 years and 52 days, Ngumoha became the third-youngest player to provide multiple assists in a Champions League game, behind Warren Zaire-Emery against AC Milan in 2023 (17y 231d) and Theo Walcott against Hamburg in 2006 (17y 250d).

He is also the youngest player for Liverpool to either score or assist for the club in the Champions League. Since Opta records began in 2008-09, Ngumoha is the youngest player on record to complete 5+ dribbles (seven), have 10+ touches in the opposition box (12) and register an assist (two) in the competition.

Van Dijk: 'Much more to come'

"He's pretty electric at times and he showed it again. He was a complete threat constantly and their defenders had a tough time," Van Dijk said of Ngumoha's midweek display.

Asked who has taken Ngumoha under their wing since the departure of Liverpool stalwart Mohamed Salah in the summer, Van Dijk added: "A few senior players. I would say Cody [Gakpo] is definitely part of that. But everyone has that role in order to help the youngsters in the group, the players who have not had so much experience.

"Everyone is chipping in but for him to work with Mo [Salah] last year was obviously massive, as Mo was one of the best wingers at the club and experienced everything, so why not soak in all the information and show it on the pitch and show your own qualities? I think he has shown it this season, but there is still much more to come."

Despite the plaudits, Ngumoha has been restricted to just one Premier League start this season and is yet to register a goal contribution in the competition for the Reds. The Brighton clash could offer the perfect opportunity to change that.

Brighton riding high under Hurzeler

The Seagulls arrive at Anfield in fine form, sitting third in the Premier League after a thumping 5-0 win over rivals Crystal Palace. Fabian Hurzeler's side became the ninth in Premier League history to score three goals in the first 10 minutes of a match, before Charalampos Kostoulas and Jack Hinshelwood concluded the rout after the break.

In the Conference League in midweek, Brighton had to settle for a point in a goalless draw with Jablonec, though they remain ninth in the 36-team standings.

With Brighton's strong start, speculation has linked Hurzeler with the Manchester United job amid uncertainty around Michael Carrick's position. The German, however, shut down the talk.

"I'm really focused on my job here. I have no time to think about these rumours because we play every three days and, besides that, I have a lot of respect for Michael Carrick and what he has done with Manchester United the last season," Hurzeler said. "He's a great human being, a great personality. There's nothing more to say about that."

Players to watch

Liverpool – Alexander Isak: The Sweden international has five goals in his last five Premier League appearances, as many as he scored in his previous 20 combined for Newcastle United and Liverpool. He has not ended on the losing side in any of his last 15 league appearances (W9 D6).

Brighton – Charalampos Kostoulas: Kostoulas has scored and assisted in two of his last three Premier League appearances. He is the first teenager to do so more than once in a season since Kelechi Iheanacho for Manchester City in 2016-17, while the last teenager to achieve it three times in one campaign was Michael Owen in 1998-99.

Match prediction: Liverpool win

Liverpool have lost just one of their last 13 home games against Brighton in all competitions (W9 D3), winning each of their last four against the Seagulls at Anfield. However, with two draws and a defeat at Anfield in the Premier League this season, the Reds could fail to win each of their opening four home matches of a league campaign for only the fourth time, after 1894-95, 1911-12 and 2012-13.

Liverpool are also winless in their last five home Premier League matches (D4 L1) — only twice have they had worse runs at Anfield: seven from November 2002 to February 2003 and eight from December 2020 to March 2021.

Brighton, meanwhile, have won each of their last four Premier League games by an aggregate score of 15-0. The last side to win five successive matches in the competition without conceding were Liverpool in April 2022. Hurzeler's side are one of only eight teams to have scored 23 goals in their opening seven Premier League games of a season, and the first since Manchester City in 2022-23. The Seagulls have won two of their last three Premier League meetings with Liverpool (L1), as many as they managed in their first 15 against the Reds (D4 L9).

Opta win probability: Liverpool 46.8%, Draw 26.4%, Brighton 26.8%.