Liverpool v Wrexham
Rio Ngumoha goal gives Liverpool win over Wrexham in New York friendly
A deflected Rio Ngumoha goal decided the friendly meeting between Liverpool and Wrexham at Yankee Stadium, making it two wins out of two for Andoni Iraola on his first preseason tour in charge of the Reds.
Ngumoha's goal, scored in front of Wrexham's Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac at the iconic baseball venue, looped in off Wrexham defender Lewis Brunt, much to the delight of the majority of the 42,204 supporters in New York.
Liverpool's preparations for the match were impacted by their flight from Chicago being cancelled on Tuesday night with players and staff on the tarmac. Unfavourable weather conditions in the New York area delayed their arrival until the matchday morning.
With Joe Gomez injured and Federico Chiesa unwell, Iraola named an experimental side with highly rated 16-year-old Joshua Abe starting on the right.
And he could have given Liverpool the lead after bring sent in behind the Wrexham defence by Harvey Elliott, but a heavy first touch allowed Wrexham goalkeeper Danny Ward to save.
Another youngster, Lewis Koumas, went close with a strike from distance, but with a starting attack of Calum Scanlon, Koumas and Abe, Liverpool found it difficult to threaten the Wrexham goal.
The Championship side begin their season in earnest when they take on Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup in eight days' time. Therefore, they are further along in their preparations for the new campaign and could have taken the lead if Sam Smith or Callum Doyle had been more clinical with their finishing.
Elliott tested Ward shortly after the start of the second half, with Dominik Szoboszlai later also going close in a match that failed to quicken pulses.
Ngumoha, who was among several halftime changes made by Iraola, scored the only goal of the game in the 75th minute as his shot looped over Ward and into the net.

