Sadio Mane helped convince Ryan Gravenberch about a move to Liverpool (Image: Getty)
star may have helped to free up £51million worth of transfer funds for manager .
The Dutch international has been a revelation in a deep-lying midfield role this season, establishing himself as one of the first names on the team sheet after being used sparingly by last campaign.
And the success of that positional change is likely to sway the Reds hierarchy away from spending big on another No. 6 this summer. have previously been heavily linked with Real Sociedad playmaker Martin Zubimendi, who has a in his contract.
The emergence of 22-year-old Gravenberch as a formidable presence in front of the back-line means a move for Zubimendi may now be pointless. are expected to sign him in any case, having made progress in talks with Sociedad during the January transfer window.
But with Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister performing to such a high level, any deep-lying midfield signing would surely be consigned to the bench, barring an injury issue.
Gravenberch cost himself when he signed from Bayern Munich in 2023. But his new role, having been used slightly further forward by Klopp, should allow Slot to focus his summer transfer spree on improving other areas of the squad, and save the huge chunk of cash which may otherwise have been spent on Zubimendi.
Ryan Gravenberch has been a revelation for Liverpool this season (Image: Getty)
Part of the reason Gravenberch ended up at Anfield was because of legend Sadio Mane, who he once shared a dressing room with at Bayern. Former Ajax star Gravenberch recently shed light on the crucial chat which preceded his Merseyside transfer.
“Sadio is a really nice guy,” he told the club’s . “When I was in Munich, I asked him also about , if it’s like a good step for me and how the club was and everything. He said a lot of good things. So, in my head I was like, ‘I have to go!'”
Gravenberch also explained his early contact with Slot, who was appointed to replace Klopp ahead of this season. “I knew him because I played against him when he was at Feyenoord,” he continued.
“The first conversation was on the phone, he called me and he asked me how I was feeling and how he sees me in the team, as a No. 6 and as a No. 8. Before I came here those were also the positions I liked to play – more the No. 8 than the No. 6 – but this season he put me on the No. 6 and [I’ve] done really well.”