In the long run, according to Klopp, Gravenberch can take Fabinho’s place as Liverpool’s specialized defensive midfielder.
Ryan Gravenberch’s potential to succeed Fabinho in the long run has been highlighted by Jurgen Klopp, who also dismissed the new Liverpool midfielder’s difficult year at Bayern Munich as “a normal step” in his development.
After just one season at Munich, where he only earned a few starts among his 34 appearances and had been restricted to just nine minutes this term, Netherlands international Gravenberch joined on transfer deadline day for a cost that could rise to £40 million.
The versatile midfielder can be the ideal replacement for Fabinho at Anfield after the Brazilian moved to Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad in July. According to Klopp, the difficult season experienced is typical for a young player moving to such a big club at the age of 20.
“Thomas Tuchel, the manager of Bayern Munich, said that; I didn’t mention [the position]!” Klopp commented on the ideal situation for Gravenberch. “I think he has the potential to play as a No. 6 in the future. Alexis Mac Allister’s only flaw is that he can play the position, but how would you characterize him as a classical 6? Most likely not. However, the position in football has evolved over time.
“He is so talented that I prefer not to discuss the areas in which he still needs improvement. All of them have capabilities, and while he is aware of the need for improvement and makes an effort to do so, only the innate abilities are present right away. Everything else develops over time. He is an 8, he can play as a 10, and eventually, he will be able to play as a 6. They simply need to get used to the various locations and duties, just like Curtis [Jones] could play as a 6.
“That role isn’t the most challenging in the world; you occasionally have to rein yourself in a little bit. Hendo battled with that till the very end while producing some amazing games on the 6. But I cannot continue to be involved in this or that, he would add. This was the circumstance.
However, [Gravenberch] is a true talent in addition to that. We must now wait and see. He is new, it’s a mid- and long-term project, and we don’t need to force him in since we have fantastic players already. He will be with us for sure and have plenty of opportunity to play.
Regarding Gravenberch’s presence in Germany for the entire season, Klopp continued, “That’s a natural situation in a career; the only player I know who is always high is Lionel Messi. Even he probably doesn’t always experience highs, and football includes everything else. It is not a concern.
“There are no extreme lows because he played certain games; he was playing Bayern Munich, by the way, and that would have occurred to many players. It is not a “low” [what happened at Bayern], it’s a natural stage in a career; Bayern is a really good team with lots of players, so that can absolutely happen.
