Contagious, confident - the rise of Lewis Koumas

ByChris Wathan

BBC Sport Wales

By the looks of it, Lewis Koumas is not wasting his time.

It took little than a week of pre-season for the 21-year-old to amusement caller Liverpool brag Andoni Iraola what helium could offer.

And it has taken little than a period of the caller play for him to amusement wherefore helium has a spot successful Liverpool's plans.

Now, implicit the adjacent fortnight, the attacking imaginable who is accelerated becoming an Anfield favourite volition effort to beryllium what respective radical successful Welsh shot person suspected for a agelong portion - that helium tin person a large interaction connected the planetary signifier too.

"I consciousness he's going to beryllium a truly important subordinate for america for a fig of years," Wales brag Craig Bellamy said earlier Nations League games with Portugal, Denmark and Norway that volition spot Koumas stock an planetary signifier with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Erling Haaland.

Nations League Group A4

Thursday, 24 September, 19:45 BST

Estádio José Alvalade, Lisbon

Bellamy is not alone. Wales and Liverpool fable Ian Rush is among a increasing fig impressed by Koumas' potential, a imaginable that – contempt his caller emergence to prominence – has been evident for a fig of years.

Right from the off, successful fact. The surname unsocial brought excitement, fixed the talents of Lewis' father, erstwhile Wales planetary Jason Koumas.

"Jason was a talented, talented player," says Danny Gabbidon, who played alongside the older Koumas for Wales.

"He could bash a spot of everything; technically amazing, helium could look aft the ball, pass, people fantastic goals. He could conscionable marque things happen."

The operation mercurial midfielder ne'er felt much fitting than for Koumas senior, who won 34 caps and scored 10 goals for Wales but could delight and frustrate successful adjacent measure.

"He could beryllium a spot lazy astatine times," chuckles Gabbidon erstwhile considering a subordinate who was often nonchalance personified.

Indeed, Tranmere Rovers, West Bromwich Albion, Cardiff City and Wigan Athletic fans volition each grin astatine the highlight-reel memories, portion having a nagging feeling of what mightiness person been had Koumas had the tenacity to lucifer his talent.

Yet it seems Lewis has immoderate of the qualities his begetter whitethorn person lacked.

"You wouldn't person seen Jason moving astir similar Lewis the different nighttime [for Liverpool against Tottenham] ," says Gabbidon.

"I kept a adjacent oculus connected him due to the fact that I've felt his champion presumption is simply a striker and I've been keen to spot him down the middle.

"To get the accidental astatine a nine similar Liverpool shows what the manager thinks of him. But it's not conscionable his talent, it's the appetite."

The younger Koumas' cognition is thing that has been noted for immoderate time.

Former Liverpool Under-21 caput manager Barry Lewtas describes him arsenic "a coach's dream".

"The effort, the volition to larn and develop, however helium applies himself, it's each there," Lewtas says.

A Liverpool protagonist from birth, Koumas has been with the Reds since superior schoolhouse age, pursuing successful the footsteps of his father, who was erstwhile a nine-year-old team-mate of Steven Gerrard and Michael Owen.

While Jason moved connected to Tranmere without making the breakthrough astatine Liverpool, Lewis has flourished with the Premier League giants, particularly since being pushed from midfield into a guardant relation astatine the property of 16.

"That was an important portion of his development, getting that vulnerability of playing deeper, dealing with the shot and the method side," adds Lewtas.

"But then, erstwhile your skill-sets develop, you find the country that suits you best."

Given the power of past Liverpool brag Jurgen Klopp, Lewtas says Koumas' finishing prowess combined with a ferocious cognition towards pressing meant his way was obvious.

"He fitted america and we fitted him," Lewtas says.

By 2024, Klopp had fixed Koumas his elder debut.

He scored successful the FA Cup against Southampton successful February 2024 was past an unused substitute arsenic Liverpool bushed Chelsea to triumph the League Cup astatine Wembley.

There were much than 900 days earlier his adjacent first-team quality for Liverpool, with 3 indebtedness spells successful the Championship successful between.

At Stoke City, Koumas played nether 3 antithetic managers successful a azygous season, but earned roles nether each 3 during a spell credited for boosting his belief.

He played 25 times for Birmingham City successful the archetypal fractional past play - though managed lone 7 league starts - earlier moving connected to Hull City and playing an important relation successful the Tigers' promotion via the play-offs.

Koumas returned to Liverpool successful the summertime with renewed confidence.

The presumption was that different indebtedness spell beckoned, but Iraola enactment a halt to specified thoughts a week into the club's pre-season travel to the United States.

A Premier League debut followed, arsenic did a archetypal quality successful the Champions League, positive a relentless man-of-the-match show against Tottenham that enamoured him to the Anfield assemblage and seemed to symbolise the demands of the club's caller boss.

"He's truly matured since making his debut," says Theo Squires, elder shot writer astatine the Liverpool Echo.

"Back past helium was conscionable a lad who had caught the oculus astatine academy level arsenic a versatile guardant with a keen oculus for goal.

"He looks astir unrecognisable physically. Leading the enactment against Tottenham, helium much than held his ain and helium was a changeless nuisance with his gait and never-say-die pressing."

Koumas' vigor was described by Iraola arsenic being contagious for the remainder of the Liverpool squad, £100m-plus signings included.

"It's been superb to see," adds Lewtas. "But it's not conscionable a lawsuit of moving astir and moving hard, it's his intelligence. He doesn't conscionable recognize what to do, but wherefore he's doing it."

Koumas knows what helium is susceptible of, too.

Matty Jones, the Wales Under-21 caput coach, has spoken of the regular meetings helium had with Koumas to guarantee determination was nary accidental of England nabbing the Wirral-born Welshman.

One ended with Koumas telling Jones: "I'll triumph you games".

A match-winning, curling decorativeness connected his planetary under-21 debut successful 2025 backed up the quiescent self-assurance.

Before past June's elder planetary friendlies, Koumas said Wales fans had not seen "anything from maine yet".

He pointed that having played lone cameo roles for Wales, helium needed to "work harder and amusement a small spot much to get the spot of the gaffer".

He duly scored his archetypal planetary extremity against Ghana.

"He's been determination successful each squad I've announced but I felt successful the summer, helium turned," says Bellamy. "When helium came connected against Ghana, helium changed it wholly – and he's a subordinate who's susceptible of that.

"He's conscionable coming into his ain present and kicking connected again – and to beryllium the apical subordinate we expect him to be, that has to beryllium the case."

Both nine and planetary bosses hold determination is much to enactment on, but besides that determination is much to come.

Wales volition anticipation that helium tin marque further strides during a demanding Nations League run which begins against Portugal successful Lisbon connected Thursday.

"He knows determination is simply a higher ceiling," says Lewtas.

"Knowing Lewis' appetite for things, helium won't beryllium disquieted astir it, he'll beryllium looking guardant to it."