After a week of transfer misery, could Liverpool land one of Europe’s most exciting youngsters this summer?
- Liverpool’s midfield has been hit hard in the transfer window, and they are in desperate need of reinforcements, particularly a holding midfielder.
- Ryan Gravenberch from Bayern Munich could be a potential signing for Liverpool, as he is open to a move and sees a role for himself at the club.
- Gravenberch, although not a natural defensive midfielder, has shown great potential and versatility in his performances, making him a valuable addition to the team.
Liverpool could sign a midfielder described as “better than Jude Bellingham” this summer after missing out on their other targets, as transfers expert Graeme Bailey has heard his name “quite a lot” in connection to the Merseysiders.
Liverpool news – what is the latest?
While the transfer window started incredibly positively for Jurgen Klopp’s men with the arrival of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai, to say the last week has been a disaster would be a massive understatement.
Following the departures of senior midfielders Fabinho and Jordan Henderson to the wealthy Saudi Pro League, the Reds were incredibly light in the middle of the park and without a specified number six for the boss to rely upon.
Recognising this problem, the six-time European champions set out to sign Southampton’s exciting youngster Romeo Lavia, but after having three bids rejected for not reaching the club’s £50m valuation, they turned their attention towards Brighton & Hove Albion’s Moises Caicedo.
In an unprecedented move from the club, it looked as if they had successfully hijacked Chelsea’s transfer plans when their £111m offer was accepted by the Seagulls, only for the player to then choose the Blues, forcing Liverpool to go back in with a £60m bid for Lavia.
However, in what was probably the worst-case scenario, the 19-year-old followed in the Ecuadorian’s footsteps and also turned the Merseysiders down, instead opting to make his way to Stamford Bridge to play under Mauricio Pochettino.
This chain of events has left Klopp in desperate need of midfield reinforcements, and according to 90min’s transfers expert, Graeme Bailey, the club could well reignite their interest in Bayern Munich’s Dutch wonderkid Ryan Gravenberch, who would be open to a move due to his limited game time in Germany.
He explained the situation on 90min’s Talking Transfers podcast, saying:
“I think they do need this holding midfielder in there. But the one I think to keep an eye on guys is, and I’ve said this all summer, is Ryan Gravenberch from Bayern Munich. I think they might even do two, but I think Gravenberch could be one of them.
“He was waiting to see how the season goes with Bayern, I think he wants out, I think he knows there’s a role he can play at Liverpool, so I’d keep an eye on him, I’m still hearing his name quite a lot.”
Where was Ryan Gravenberch born?
Born on May 16th, 2002, in the Dutch capital, Amsterdam, the 21-year-old has long been seen as one of the country’s next big stars, with former Netherlands player Rafael Van der Vaart boldly claiming that the former youngster was “better than Jude Bellingham. At everything.”
Whilst that claim could certainly be interpreted as ever so slightly hyperbolic, the former Ajax man frequently put in brilliant displays in the Eredivisie and has even shown glimpses of greatness in his somewhat underwhelming time in Bavaria.
Whilst he made just three Bundesliga starts for the Bavarians last term, he did make an additional 21 appearances off the bench, and his underlying numbers suggest that even though he was given limited minutes, he was putting in good performances.
According to FBref, which compares players in a similar position across Europe’s top five leagues, the £152,000-a-week man sits in the top 7% of midfielders for shot-creating actions, the top 13% for progressive passes received, the top 14% for non-penalty expected goals, and the top 16% for total shots, all per 90.
The 6 foot 3 dynamo also has the added attribute of positional versatility, having played in five different positions so far in his senior career. That said, if the Reds are looking at him as a potential number six long-term, that could be a problem, as while he can fill in there, playing the role 31 times, it isn’t his natural position.
Ultimately while he might not be the out-and-out defensive midfielder that Klopp so desperately needs, this is still a deal the club should be trying to get done as Gravenberch is still young, and the potential to be a world beater is still so clearly present in him.
