Ryan Gravenberch in search of continued improvement in 'six' role

Liverpool midfielder on learning the game with his older sibling in Amsterdam and his rise to prominence at Anfield.

Fri, 18 Oct, 2024 - 18:45

Will Unwin

The Gravenberch boys are not afraid of change. While Ryan’s relatively short career has taken in three of Europe’s most historic clubs, older brother Danzell has ticked 13 different teams in a nomadic existence. And for the former, an eight-year age gap is to thank for propelling him to the heights he has reached.

Ryan Gravenberch’s CV contains spells at Ajax, Bayern Munich and now Liverpool.

Danzell Gravenberch’s CV started the same before Universitatea Cluj, Reading and Karmiotissa were added to the lengthy list to bring a very different collection of experiences that started with intense schoolboy kickabouts in Amsterdam.

This season, the younger sibling has become an integral part of the team who sit at the top of the Premier League thanks to a fine start under head coach Arne Slot, playing as the team’s highly-impressive No6, a role that will be tested when Chelsea visit Anfield on Sunday.

“When I was younger I just watched him [Danzell] play and when we were a bit older I would go with him to play on the streets and he’s a big boy so it was difficult for me,” Gravenberch remembers.

“He toughened me up and I became stronger – he did everything for me.”

Under Jürgen Klopp, Gravenberch made 12 league starts and 14 substitute appearances in his first season at Anfield, and nor was he a regular at Bayern before heading to Merseyside. It looked like the career of an exceptional talent was beginning to stagnate.

Things have changed since the arrival of Slot, however, with Gravenberch becoming a mainstay under his compatriot, the man who helps dictate play in front of Liverpool’s defence as well as helping them control matches and generally knitting everything together in midfield.

Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberch during the UEFA Champions League match v Bologna at Anfield.

“I think in football terms under Klopp we played more directly and we did a lot of counter-pressing as well,” Gravenberch says. “I think we did it really well but I think with this manager it is a bit more about good positioning, being able to kill the opponents with passes and play out from the back.”

There were plenty of people doubting whether Gravenberch could adapt to the position given it was deeper than he was used to, but statistics show the Netherlands midfielder has made a seamless transition.

Gravenberch has won 59.3% of his duels this season, is top of the list for recoveries and interruptions in the Liverpool team, in addition to a healthy 89.7% pass completion rate. Most importantly, he has been key to a side who have won six out of seven Premier League matches.

“It feels good but to be honest I have to adapt more because I’m not a natural defending No 6,” Gravenberch says. “First [at the start of his career] I was like a more attacking midfielder, so for myself I have to adapt more.

"I think the first games were really good but I have to keep improving. We have a lot of possession and I have a lot of the ball and that is what I wanted, so it feels good, it feels comfortable.

“I spoke to Macca [Alexis Mac Allister] because obviously last season he played a lot there and also [Wataru] Endo about what they used to do, anticipating where the ball can come, just some little chats.”

Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea play with three attacking players behind a central striker and Cole Palmer should provide Gravenberch with his toughest test thus far. The England international has scored six times and created another five goals in seven league games this season.

He is the player making the difference for Chelsea and keeping him quiet will be integral to Liverpool’s chances of winning once again at the weekend.

Wolverhampton Wanderers' Joao Gomes (left) and Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberch battle for the ball. Pic: Nick Potts/PA Wire.

Slot had earmarked Gravenberch early on, preferring someone comfortable in possession to a defensive midfielder who is all about winning it back, albeit Liverpool did target Real Sociedad’s Martín Zubimendi for that exact role in the summer only to be knocked back by the Spain international.

“After the Euros he called me and he said he wants to give me a chance and then he said: ‘I want you to focus on the No 8 position but I also want to see you in the No 6 position’,” Gravenberch says of his initial contact with Slot following the manager’s arrival from Feyenoord.

“My first reaction was really good because as a player it doesn’t really matter where you play as long as you can play. When I played at Ajax I also played this role, but not a lot, so I knew a little bit of what I had to do.”

Still only 22, Gravenberch can boast more experience than older counterparts. Aged 16 and 130 days he became Ajax’s youngest ever player, beating the record previously held by Clarence Seedorf, who went on to win four Champions League titles in a glittering career.

Gravenberch’s hero was another former Real Madrid legend, Zinedine Zidane.

“Obviously when you’re a kid on the streets you want to be like him and what he achieved, you want to achieve as well,” he says. “For me, when I was growing up I definitely wanted to win the prizes and make it to the big teams.”

Gravenberch is back on the right path to follow in his heroes’ footsteps thanks to learning to embrace new challenges from his continent-trotting brother, and those lessons on the streets.

Guardian