Arne Slot has relied on Ryan Gravenberch in midfield (Image: Getty)
Ryan Gravenberch has proven to be the perfect welcoming gift for at .
The Netherlands international has been reborn in the No. 6 role at Anfield, developing his defensive work to be the lynchpin in the Reds’ midfield trio behind Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai.
Gravenberch was signed from Bayern Munich for £34million as a creative player whilst Jorg Schmadtke was operating as sporting director at Anfield, but his willingness to adapt has made him the ideal fit into Slot’s system.
The ex-Ajax star has received high praise so far this season, and legend Mark Lawrenson is the latest to heap praise on the playmaker. He told SportingCasting: “I don’t just think Ryan Gravenberch is ’s Gini Wijnaldum replacement – I think he’s better than him.
“Don’t get me wrong, Wijnaldum was a really good player for under Jürgen Klopp, but I think Gravenberch has got a little burst of pace and more attacking qualities that Gini didn’t have.
“I don’t know whether it’s a coincidence or not, but knows all about him for obvious reasons, and he seems to have pushed the correct buttons to get him going this season.
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Ryan Gravenberch has impressed as a No. 6 (Image: Getty)
“He looks a really classy player at the moment and compliments Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai really well.
“All three midfielders have started the campaign very promisingly, which is great to see. I don’t think there’s a better midfield trio in the league at the moment.”
Jorg Schmadtke enjoyed a brief spell at Liverpool (Image: Getty)
Schmadtke splashed the cash during his time on Merseyside, orchestrating a major rebuild of ’s midfield following the departures of several veteran stars, such as James Milner and Jordan Henderson. Szoboszlai, Gravenberch, Mac Allister and Wataru Endo arrived to breathe a new lease of life into the department, and was very pleased with the quartet of arrivals.
Speaking about his time working with the former manager, Schmadtke told Die Zeit: “Unlike the clubs in Germany, in I was responsible for the transfers, but I mainly worked with Jurgen. I stopped everyone from knocking on his door. I no longer wanted to be part of the change process that began with the new coach.”
And Schmadtke’s signing of Gravenberch for Klopp has turned out to be a massive blessing for Slot, who is getting the very best out of Gravenberch at Anfield.