Six Liverpool Youngsters Hoping for Breakout Seasons in 2026

The likes of Steven Gerrard, Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Trent Alexander-Arnold have all graduated from Liverpool’s academy during the Premier League era. Now another band of wonderkids are awaiting the chance to follow in their footsteps.

There are some dazzlingly bright talents currently residing in Liverpool’s youth teams, many of whom have already enjoyed a taste of senior soccer. 2026–27 could be their breakout years, handed the opportunity to impress a new manager.

Andoni Iraola’s arrival marks a fresh start for Liverpool’s prospects, who will be eager to make a positive impression on the Spaniard during a pivotal preseason campaign. Those who shine could play their way into his plans.

Here are six Liverpool youngsters who could prosper next season.

Rio Ngumoha

Some might argue 2025–26 was Rio Ngumoha’s breakout year. Amid Liverpool’s struggles, the 17-year-old winger was a necessary breath of fresh air courtesy of his searing speed, stellar dribbling ability and unwavering bravery in possession. Twenty-nine appearances yielded three goal involvements and an array of encouraging performances.

Liverpool have already signed one senior winger this summer in Víctor Muñoz and another will likely follow as a replacement for the departed Mohamed Salah. But Ngumoha can still make the step up from disruptive impact substitute to regular starter next season if he continues on his current trajectory.

Ngumoha’s sparkling feet have already struck fear into Premier League right backs. The athleticism and technical class is already there, but the Englishman, who already has a senior cap for the national team, must improve his end product to truly establish himself as a trusted option under Iraola.

Liverpool will be wary of overloading such an inexperienced talent, but Ngumoha is no ordinary youngster. He should earn plenty of game time in 2026–27.

Giovanni Leoni

Giovanni Leoni’s debut season at Liverpool amounted to just one match. Signed for $40.7 million from Parma, where the 19-year-old had only played 17 times, the center back suffered a cruel and devastating ACL injury on his debut in the Carabao Cup. He’s still working his way back to fitness nearly a year later.

The Reds will undoubtedly ease Leoni back into the action after such a lengthy layoff, but the club’s current lack of depth and quality at center back will provide opportunities for the Italian once he’s fully fit. The 35-year-old Virgil van Dijk, injury-prone Joe Gomez and 21-year-old Jérémy Jacquet are Iraola’s only other options in the role following Ibrahima Konaté’s exit.

Expectations remain sky-high for Leoni, who is still considered among the world’s most promising young defenders. Grace must be given to the towering teenager as he recuperates, with his reintegration likely to take some time, but there’s no reason he can’t enjoy a prominent role for Liverpool as next season progresses.

Trey Nyoni

Trey Nyoni has plenty of experience in and around Liverpool’s first team. After debuting in 2023–24 to become the club’s fourth-youngest appearance-maker ever, the midfielder has proceeded to play a further 19 times across the past two campaigns.

Arne Slot used the 19-year-old on 14 separate occasions last term, offering him invaluable experience to take into coming seasons. Iraola now has the chance to turbocharge his development with his impeccable man-management ability.

Nyoni has been on the cusp of a breakthrough for some time, yet has never been entirely trusted in the engine room. A slender frame and lack of physicality makes it risky to field him on the ferocious battlegrounds of the Premier League and Champions League.

However, the talent is clear as a deep-lying playmaker with impressive vision and a wide passing range. Perhaps he can show more regular glimpses of his promise next term.

Stefan Bajcetic

Injuries have been unkind to Stefan Bajčetić. First embraced as an emergency option under Jürgen Klopp during the 2022–23 campaign, in which he made 19 senior appearances, the midfielder looked set for stardom after a hugely impressive stint. “Top talent, super player,” was how Klopp described him in his debut season.

Fitness issues soon emerged, though, perhaps caused by his body being overburdened at such a young age. A calf injury ruled him out for almost the entirety of the 2023–24 campaign, after which loan spells with RB Salzburg and Las Palmas culminated in the Spaniard sustaining another long-term injury which required surgery on his hamstring.

As a result, the 21-year-old sat out the 2025–26 season and is still yet to make his full return to first-team training. Whether he can even participate in preseason this summer remains to be seen.

If Bajčetić can be nursed back to health, there are few doubts about the quality he can provide in the coming years. While his development has stagnated on the sidelines, the technical class which made him such an exciting prospect will be waiting for him upon his return.

Jayden Danns

Jayden Danns didn’t waste time in making an impact. On only his third senior Liverpool appearance, the Scouse striker rose from the bench in a Carabao Cup tie against Southampton to bag a clinical brace in front of the Anfield faithful. Unfortunately for the 20-year-old, his progress has been halted by fitness problems since.

The forward tore his hamstring in September 2025, forcing him to sit out the bulk of the subsequent campaign. Upon his return in March, he suffered a recurrence of his ailment in defeat to Manchester City’s Under-21s and has been sidelined ever since.

He did not travel with Iraola’s squad for their American preseason tour, which is perhaps no bad thing as Liverpool proceed with the utmost caution, but there are certainly hopes that Danns will soon shake off his ailment.

The local lad’s speed, power and ruthless edge in front of goal means he’s still an undeniably bright talent. With Hugo Ekitiké currently on the sidelines through injury, potentially missing until 2027, Liverpool could do with a breakout season from Danns.

Kieran Morrison

Kieran Morrison is already a senior international. The versatile 19-year-old winger was rewarded for his encouraging displays in Liverpool’s academy with his first Northern Ireland cap in June 2026, by which point he had already turned out for the Reds’ first team on two occasions.

The Manchester-born forward has been exceptional for Liverpool’s Under-21s, scoring 18 goals and registering eight assists across 50 appearances. The Reds will certainly hope that eye-catching form can translate to the senior side over the coming months and years.

Morrison might not be quite ready for a full breakout year, but the youngster is becoming difficult to ignore. Having already featured regularly on the Liverpool bench and in first-team training, it’s not impossible he develops swiftly under Iraola, who is a very capable trainer of young players.

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