Ryan Gravenberch makes big transfer claim and explains why Liverpool team-mate is shouting at him less

Ryan Gravenberch makes big transfer claim and explains why Liverpool team-mate is shouting at him less

Ryan Gravenberch is loving his football at Liverpool after winning a starting place and enjoying an eye-catching season so far

Ryan Gravenberch and Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool during the Premier League opener at Ipswich Town (Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images )

Ryan Gravenberch has revealed Virgil van Dijk’s role in helping him adapt as a number six. Gravenberch has cemented his place as Liverpool’s first-choice defensive midfielder this season, grabbing his opportunity after the club saw a move for Martin Zubimendi collapse in the summer.

A £40m signing from Bayern Munich in August 2023, Gravenberch endured a mixed first season at Anfield as he struggled for consistency. Also battling injury, he found himself in and out of Jurgen Klopp’s starting XI as a result.

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However, fielded in a new role under new head coach Arne Slot, the 22-year-old has been a man reborn for Liverpool this season.

Previously a more offensive player, it has been an adjustment for Gravenberch. But he has taken to the new position well. And with Slot revealing early on to his compatriot his plan to play him deeper, the Dutchman has shared how fellow Netherlands international Van Dijk reins him in if he ever ventures too far forward - though such cries are now becoming fewer and fewer.

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“I have indeed started playing more defensively,” Gravenberch told Soccer News . “Last year, I went forward more often, but now I have to think more defensively. That change happened quite quickly.

“I have Virgil behind me to help me. If I go forward too much, he calls me back. 'Rio, stay here!' I notice that he has to call less and less often and that I focus more on defending. In attack, I try to read the game. That often works well.”

Gravenberch continued: “The coach called all the players for a talk. After the European Championship he called me to tell him how he saw me. He knew me from my time at Ajax, of course, when he was at AZ and Feyenoord.

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“He told me what position he wanted to use me in and he put me at six. I went into it with an open mind. I played a lot at eight and when I was younger also at six.

“That helps, but now other things are being asked of me. In the youth I could go forward. Back then there was no Virgil who called me back!”

Gravenberch has completed every minute of Liverpool’s 15 matches in the Premier League and Champions League so far this campaign, having only made 21 starts in all competitions last season.

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Of course, such a return was still far superior to his disappointing solitary season at Bayern Munich prior to his switch to Anfield where he was limited to just five starts in the Bundesliga and Champions League.

Gravenberch is far happier at Liverpool now that he has put such a plight behind him. Admitting it was a tough experience in Munich, he believes he still benefitted from it and has his parents to thank for keeping him on the right path.

“I did not play much at Bayern, but I always knew that I would come out on top,” he said. “I became stronger because of that period.

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“It was sometimes mentally tough, but I learned a lot from it. It is an experience that I still benefit from today.

“I made my first big transfer and then you think that it would be the same there, but it went completely differently. Fortunately, I lived with my parents in Munich. We had a lot of conversations and they kept me calm.

“Now I can put it behind me. It's great that I'm playing a lot of minutes as a starter at Liverpool again.

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“I am happy of course. It feels good. I just try to do my thing every game. Of course it is nice when everyone praises you, but I have to make sure I am there every game. Hopefully I can continue like this.”

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