Rewarded for his electric start to the season, Ryan Gravenberch is a player reborn under Arne Slot at Liverpool – and he can help the Reds save tens of millions.
Before a ball was kicked this season, there was already plenty of speculation and think-pieces that Gravenberch would be able to flourish better under Arne Slot than in his first season with Liverpool under Jürgen Klopp.
Despite this optimism, fans were still hopeful that the Reds would reinforce that holding midfield position, most notably after having been rejected by Martin Zubimendi there was a level of panic that the midfield may be caught short yet again as has been the case in previous seasons.
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Now nearly two months into the 2024/25 season proper, Gravenberch has been the standout player of not just Liverpool’s midfield but perhaps the best midfielder in the Premier League so far this campaign.
Now rewarded with the club’s Player of the Month award for September, he has also been nominated for the same award by the Premier League, and he stands a decent chance of claiming it.
Praise for Gravenberch has even come from the most negative of pundits. Former Dutch international Rafael van der Vaart, no stranger to a controversial comment, was effusive in his admiration during Liverpool’s Champions League win over Bologna.
Van der Vaart said of Gravenberch: “He was the man of the first half. He was everywhere in between. And turning it away… A kind of snake man. The power it radiates… He’s just a nice player. This is great, isn’t it?”
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It’s great to see Gravenberch earn these kinds of plaudits seemingly every time he takes the pitch this season, and what’s more, it is sure to completely reshape the Reds’ transfer targets for the midfield.
Still linked with Zubimendi, not to mention Atalanta’s Ederson and with Real Madrid reportedly looking to offload former Liverpool target Aurelien Tchouameni, the Reds do not need to look for a top-class holding midfield player any longer if Gravenberch keeps up these displays.
That would be at least £40m, £50m or even £60 million saved, money which could then be reinvested in other areas of the squad.
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