Wessel Antes
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Ryan Gravenberch has not made any progress since his departure from Ajax, as Wim Kieft headlines his weekly column on behalf of The Telegraph in Saturday's morning newspaper. According to the Amsterdam analyst, the 21-year-old midfielder embarked on a hopeless mission last summer by signing with Liverpool until mid-2028.
The Reds took over Gravenberch from Bayern Munich for 40 million euros last summer. Since then, the eleven-time international has played 1,621 minutes in the Liverpool shirt, spread over 33 official appearances. Gravenberch was good for three goals and 2 assists.
Kieft sees that Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo play an (important) role at Liverpool, but the youngest Dutchman at Anfield does not. “Gravenberch is a different story. Trained by Ajax and moved to Liverpool after a difficult Bayern Munich season. It is a bit of an eternal story that everything that comes from Ajax must be good.”
“In recent years, quite a few questions have been raised about that idea when you see that quite a few players have lost track after Ajax,” Kieft continues. “With Donny van de Beek with failed adventures at Manchester United and Eintracht Frankfurt as the main exponent of this.”
According to Kieft, Gravenberch was not ready to play for Bayern Munich. Yet, according to the Amsterdammer, it makes sense der Rekordmeister took the gamble. “Such players are worth the investment, even if they don't succeed. Because after a difficult season at Bayern Munich, Liverpool simply paid 40 million euros for Gravenberch. If it works, then that's great, if it doesn't work, they will sell it for an acceptable amount.”
Kieft states that Gravenberch's supervisors, Team Raiola, should have protected their pupil. “Arguments such as 'the train may only pass by once' and 'financially it is difficult to refuse the offer' are understandable, but look at the sporting future of such a young, talented player. If you can't break through at Bayern Munich, why would you succeed if you move to Liverpool?”
The former top striker absolutely does not understand why Gravenberch chose the Premier League, in his opinion the toughest competition in the world. “It is not surprising that Gravenberch mainly has to make do with substitute appearances or starting places against the little ones or in one of the cup tournaments. In matches where the big boys are given rest. While someone who is almost 22 years old has to play his matches every week to improve, gain experience and then later you can still make the step to top clubs such as Bayern Munich and Liverpool,” says Kieft.
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