Arne Slot has appeared to downplay any concerns over an injury to Rio Ngumoha after Liverpool’s 4-1 win over Barnsley on Monday night.The 17-year-old was handed his chance from the start in the FA Cup third round for the second year in succession and he gave the visitors’ defence plenty to think about at Anfield during his time on the pitch.Unfortunately, the teenager overstretched to try and keep the ball in play just after the 70-minute mark and, having required treatment on the pitch, was duly substituted for Ryan Gravenberch.Slot downplays Ngumoha injury fearsLiverpool fans may have been fearing the worst for Ngumoha after he went off in visible discomfort, but Slot has seemingly indicated that the winger hasn’t suffered a bad injury.Speaking to TNT Sports after the game (via Sky Sports), the Reds boss said: “I hope that’s cramp. I expect it to be cramp as well. He hasn’t made that many minutes this season. Today he had 70 to 75 minutes. That’s good for him.“Without wanting to disrespect [Barnsley], the intensity in the Premier League is even higher. That’s a nice first stage for Rio, so keep working really, really hard to play 90 minutes at this level.”(Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images)Slot’s update on Ngumoha seems encouragingThat Slot has attributed Ngumoha’s withdrawal to cramp rather than a muscle injury is encouraging, and hopefully once the medical staff have completed their assessments, it won’t be any more serious than that.Having seen Conor Bradley’s season ended prematurely after the knee injury he suffered against Arsenal, Liverpool fans may have been dreading a similar body blow to the 17-year-old, but thankfully that doesn’t appear to be the case.The teenager put in another impressive performance tonight during his time on the pitch – as per Sofascore, he completed four dribbles and 22 of his 26 passes (86% success), recorded two key passes and won six duels.Slot will likely be cautious with Ngumoha’s game-time for the rest of the season, with the youngster set to be limited to starts in relatively low-stakes fixtures and substitute appearances in other games, but his availability will be vital for the Reds considering the absences of other forwards.The head coach didn’t seem overly worried after the match tonight, and that’d suggest that our teenage sensation hasn’t suffered any major injury, which’ll come as a huge relief to everyone associated with Liverpool.The post ‘I expect…’ – Arne Slot issues post-match update on Rio Ngumoha after injury scare v Barnsley appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.