Ryan Gravenberch Has till The New Year to Prove His Credentials

Even though the transfer window frustrations and accusations will continue for some time, now arrives the moment to start focusing in on Liverpool‘s upcoming fixtures and the current players within, instead of those that the controversial Sporting Director, Richard Hughes, has failed to recruit. The LFC summer window ended with a whimper, something which will be dissected and brought to the fore whenever the Anfield giants struggle in the coming months. I suspect that given the failed window of change, work will increase to identify and secure the players that can add to Arne Slot’s regeneration, as well as create a potential second-half season push for silverware. I write this with an encounter against Manchester United on the horizon. The forthcoming Super Sunday fixture will see Liverpool travel to Old Trafford in one of the biggest games in all of world football. Whether or not people like it or not, Ryan Gravenberch will remain as the starting defensive midfielder for the time being, which enables him an opportunity to turn doubters into believers.

Does Gravenberch Have the Potential to Succeed in This New Role…?

After watching the initial two games of Liverpool‘s 2024/25 Premier League season, the reds two wins over Ipswich, and then Brentford, allowed the fan base to see a clear ability by the Dutch International midfielder to be an on-ball progressor, one that can receive the ball under pressure from the heavily instructed defence. This type of scenario is something that was once attributed to Alexis Mac Allister (only last season), where he himself was often task into the problematic holding midfield role. There will be certain encounters where domination and control of the game state will mask the defensive deficiencies of the former by Munich player, thus allowing his best attributes to flourish. There is of course the notion that the 6ft 3inch midfielder can be re-trained and become a more adequate fit to the deeper role. Transition (from loss of possession) is always a slippery slope when the middle ground is not protected by a specialist defensive shield. Positional sense and an ability to cut passing lines are the fundamentals that could take months of training ground instruction, which must be achieved by the gifted Head Coach, Arne Slot.

Is The Timeline Through to January Significant?

The first half of the season could well be spent adjusting the game of the player in question, to fill a need he is not ideally suited for. My hope is that this experiment (because that is exactly what it is) will give the former Ajax Academy graduate a more rounded array of attributes, that can enable him to become a solid rotation piece for the double pivot midfielder.

Ultimately, only time will tell how affecting this endeavour may be to the Merseyside clubs hopes of silverware at the end of the season. The coaching team could arrive to October and become alarming nearly aware that the 23-year-old, Gravenberch, is simply not the right fit and fall behind the likes of Wataru Endō, Curtis Jones, or Tyler Morton. The new Liverpool boss does indeed have specialist defensive midfielders at his disposal (Morton and Endō); therefore, it is up to the man who currently holds the shirt to hold onto it and make it his own.

The mistakes will inevitably come and how both the player and his manager react will prove pivotal to the selection of the position. If Ryan Gravenberch ever wanted to make a statement that he is fit for life at Anfield, he has until the start of 2025 to prove his credentials and remove the bitter memory of the one that got away, Martín Zubimendi.