Jurgen Klopp has now revealed the one thing he wants Ryan Gravenberch to ‘work on’ at Liverpool after agreeing the Dutchman’s deadline day transfer from Bayern Munich.
The Anfield outfit swooped at the final moment to prise Gravenberch to the Premier League for £34m. He agreed to leave the Allianz Arena just one year after arriving from AFC Ajax for £16m. The 21-year-old also put pen to paper on a five-year contract to move to Merseyside.
Liverpool sought a last-gasp deal for Gravenberch as Klopp bid to rebuild his engine room on the back of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho going. The Reds boss also released Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner at the end of their contracts to further reduce their midfield.
Liverpool capitalised on Gravenberch’s plight at Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich did not stop Gravenberch from moving to Merseyside having seldom played the Dutchman last season. Julian Nagelsmann and Thomas Tuchel only afforded him starting roles in a combined six games. He featured 33 times in total but played for just 937 minutes.
Tuchel continued to snub the 11-cap international this term, too, with only one appearance for nine minutes. Gravenberch made what proved to be his final outing for Der FCB as a late substitute against FC Augsburg. Tuchel overlooked him for two of a potential three matches.
Klopp is full of praise for what Gravenberch now offers
Klopp believes Liverpool have signed a highly talented player with Gravenberch’s last-ditch transfer from Bayern Munich. The Reds boss has waxed lyrical about what the Amsterdam-born technician now offers. But the German admits he will need time to settle in at Anfield.
How long it will take Gravenberch to adapt is the one thing he questions about Liverpool’s new No38. Although Klopp adds that the presence of Dutchmen Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo will help. Gakpo also faced a similar transition when he joined from PSV in January.
“The package is really interesting,” Klopp said, via quotes by the Liverpool Echo. “He’s good in small spaces, he’s good in big spaces, as well. He can accelerate. He has a good overview. Good passer, good shooter.
“He’s working extremely hard, he only arrived yesterday. But with Cody, Virgil and the age group, he’s a good guy with massive potential. He has to fit in, he will. How long it will take? I don’t know. We will work on that. I’m happy he is [here] and we can start that.”
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