It was the sort of substitution that may assume a symbolic status. Off went Mohamed Salah, on came Rio Ngumoha. And if it wasn’t quite as simple as that, given that Cody Gakpo departed at the same time and Federico Chiesa was also brought on against Nottingham Forest, or that Salah is a right winger and Ngumoha tends to ply his trade on the left, the temptation is to portray them as the past and the future respectively.
Ngumoha’s sparkling cameo was arguably his most significant appearance in the Premier League since his sensational debut in the division against Newcastle in August. It might have yielded an assist, or a part in the winner, but first Hugo Ekitike’s header from his cross was saved by Stefan Ortega and then, when the ball rebounded in off Alexis Mac Allister’s elbow, the goal was disallowed; the Argentinian’s eventual winner came still later.
