The Reds missed out on their top transfer target this summer, but a forgotten man is helping them swiftly get over this disappointment

"We’ve seen this four or five times in the game where he just opens those legs up and runs away from people. [Kobbie] Mainoo has to bring him back [and] gets the yellow card. It’s almost [Patrick] Vieira-like."

That was Jamie Carragher's take after Ryan Gravenberch got the Sky Sports pundit's tongue wagging with a dominant display for Liverpool against Manchester United. The Dutchman had just helped new Reds boss Arne Slot pass his first, proper test since taking over at Anfield with flying colours, starring in his side's 3-0 demolition of United at Old Trafford. Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah may have got the goals, but this game was won in midfield.

Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Gravenberch were all sublime: a fluid but rock-solid pyramid that drove their United counterparts into the ground. After the game, Carragher took the opportunity to poke fun at a particularly bold claim that partner-in-crime Gary Neville made ahead of the game. "Would you still not swap midfields?" he jibed.

We are used to witnessing these sorts of performances from Mac Allister and Szoboszlai, who reached similar heights during their first season at Anfield. But with Gravenberch, his eye-catching display - and excellent start to the campaign in general - came as more of a surprise.

Future of Dutch football

Indeed, Gravenberch's recent career has been a tale of unfulfilled potential. There was a time when he was hailed as the future of Dutch football. In 2018, he became Ajax's youngest-ever Eredivisie debutant, beating the legendary Clarence Seedorf's record by over 100 days as a 16-year-old.

In the seasons that followed, he established himself a first-team regular, helping Erik ten Hag's side to successive league titles in 2021 and 2022, scoring in the Champions League and following Frenkie de Jong, Christian Eriksen and Matthijs de Ligt by winning the Johan Cruyff Trophy, a prize awarded to the best Under-21s player in the Netherlands. He received international recognition too, making Frank de Boer's squad for Euro 2020.

Comparisons to footballing icons were common, with Paul Pogba among those mentioned as a reference point, due to both players' blend of technical and physical prowess as well as their ability to occupy multiple midfield roles seamlessly. Gravenberch wasn't afraid to encourage these lofty expectations either.

"I see people comparing me to such celebrities as a compliment and doesn't put me under any extra pressure," he said to De Telegraaf. "I think I should try to be myself. Ten years from now, if young footballers are told they look like Ryan Gravenberch, then I've done well in my career."

Wasted potential

It was always a question of when, not if, Gravenberch would tread a familiar path by leaving Ajax behind for one of the continent's big boys. And after a couple of summers of tussling, Bayern Munich would emerge victorious in that particular transfer battle in 2022.

Gravenberch claimed he didn't take long to decide on Bavaria as his next step, immediately vowing to "win lots of titles". The club were perhaps even more enthused by the transfer, though.

"He's one of the biggest talents in Europe, has superb technical ability, always finds solutions in tight spaces, is very dynamic and a goal threat," sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said at the time. "The fact he’s chosen FC Bayern shows that he’s convinced by us as a club and the opportunities here. We love players with that mentality. We’re confident that we’ll enjoy lots of success with him."

But as it turned out, that confidence was misplaced. Gravenberch went from one of the first names on the team sheet in Amsterdam to scrapping for playing time on the bench. In the end, he would make just four Bundesliga starts, while minutes in the Champions League were even harder to come by. Despite Leon Goretzka and Joshua Kimmich enduring their worst seasons in recent memory, both Julian Nagelsmann and his replacement Thomas Tuchel were simply not convinced he warranted a larger role.

Gravenberch wasn't happy either, venting his frustration to ESPN at the end of that season. "I expected to play more minutes than I did. I thought I would get some more chances... I told everyone that I don’t want another year like that. Of course, you can’t always be in the starting XI, but you can still play regularly - you can get a lot of minutes."

More of the same on Merseyside

A few months after these pointed comments, Gravenberch jetted off to Liverpool for, in his own words, "a fresh start". The final piece of the Reds' much-discussed midfield rebuild, following the arrivals of Mac Allister, Szoboszlai and Wataru Endo, he experienced similar struggles during his maiden Anfield campaign.

There were moments of promise, particularly in the Europa League, but on other occasions he failed to influence proceedings in any meaningful way. Jurgen Klopp summed up his 2023-24 season perfectly in February, saying: "He had outstanding performances where he was Man of the Match for us internally and other matches where you think ‘where was he actually today?'"

This inconsistency is not unusual for a player still developing, but there was a feeling that the current campaign represented a significant moment for Gravenberch. He was even tentatively linked with an Anfield exit this summer. Fortunately for him, it appears things are finally starting to click under Slot.

Unlocked by Slot

One of the main reasons Liverpool hired Slot this summer was his track record for improving players. It may still be early days, but there's been plenty to suggest that this knack will be continuing at Anfield.

Diaz, long derided for his lack of composure in front of goal, has already scored three times following intense one-to-one work with the Reds boss. Szoboszlai, meanwhile, has been liberated, showcasing his explosive dribbling ability and leaving his poor end to the season in the rearview mirror. And then there's Gravenberch, who's flourishing in Slot's 4-2-3-1 system.

Fielded alongside Mac Allister in a double pivot, but with license to roam, his reinvigoration began right from the first whistle of his side's Premier League opener against Ipswich Town. During that victory, Gravenberch used the ball better than any other Liverpool player, completing nine passes in the final third and setting Salah free in the build-up to his side's opener.

His manager was left satisfied, with his deployment in a nominally deeper role initially raising some eyebrows before kick-off. "Ryan is attacking-minded, but if we play with him [in defensive midfield], the rest of the team needs to help him as well... But what we do know with Ryan is that he can play the ball forward if he sees options to do so. So, that helped us today, especially in the second half."

Decisive in the derby

Gravenberch was also effective on the ball against Brentford the following weekend, showing off his ability to dictate proceedings by registering 71 completed passes. However, he saved his absolute best for United.

He thought he'd played a decisive role in Alexander-Arnold opening the scoring at Old Trafford early on, with his mischievous body feint leaving Kobbie Mainoo for dead before he laid on Diaz to provide the telling cross, but the goal would be ruled out for a narrow offside. Not to be deterred, Gravenberch would still make a telling contribution in the first half. Intercepting Casemiro's horrendous pass, he sauntered forward with gravitas and set Salah free, who then centred it for Diaz to nod home at the back post.

It was out of possession that Gravenberch flourished most, though. He and his Liverpool team-mates were like a swarm of locusts whenever United had the ball in midfield, and he personally won seven out of his 10 duels. This boundless energy makes him a perfect fit for Slot's new-look midfield pairing, something the manager himself was quick to recognise.

"His quality on the ball could be my first answer, but I think coming from the Netherlands we all know how good he is with the ball," Slot said in his post-match press conference. "He can be a really important player for our build-up game, but what impressed me most when I started working with him [was] how much he can run and then still how good he is when he arrives in the duel."

Perfect timing

Gravenberch's emergence as a potentially-elite midfield option could not be better timed either. Heading into the transfer window, Liverpool fans were in universal agreement over which position needed strengthening: defensive midfield.

The club clearly agreed, as they spent the majority of the summer trying desperately to convince Martin Zubimendi to part ways with his beloved Real Sociedad. In stark contrast to how the Reds normally conduct their business, the granular detail of this saga played out in the public eye. This only made it more frustrating - and somewhat embarrassing - when the midfielder conducted a staggering U-turn, ultimately turning down the Premier League giants' advances in mid-August.

Much to many fans' annoyance, there was no alternatives lined up in case of this eventuality. It was Zubimendi, or nobody, which forced Slot to stick with his current squad - not that he seemed that bothered. "I truly believe you can help on the training ground and improve," he said. "It has helped players to improve here. If other clubs strengthen they become better, but it's not always true that new players make you stronger."

Few niggling doubts?

In many ways, it's refreshing that Slot opted to back himself as a coach, as opposed to throwing his toys out of the pram, following the botched pursuit of the club's main target. And so far, the Reds' faith in his ability to find another level in Gravenberch is paying dividends.

Not everyone is convinced that he is the long-term answer in Liverpool's midfield, however, with his own national team manager, Ronald Koeman, giving him a cold dose of reality after the United victory. "I have always seen the potential in him, but I believed he lacked focus. This is something that he had to improve and now it seems that he finally realises what is asked of him," he said.

This could be dismissed as a typically Dutch dose of honest feedback, but there are still a few question marks about Gravenberch in this new role. Thanks to the strength of opposition thus far, his tendency to dash forward has not proved problematic. When Liverpool face teams on a more equal footing, his expansive tendencies might leave Mac Allister with too much to do defensively.

Gravenberch has had a propensity to give the ball away cheaply in the past, too. And while these bad habits have lessened significantly in the opening three games of the season, they may resurface in more testing games as the campaign drags on.

While both of these things may be true, it is worth remembering that Gravenberch is still just 22. There's plenty of time for the chinks in his armour to be smoothed and there's countless aspects of his game to get excited about. As this glorious start to the season has reminded the world, he can carry the ball through traffic, is destructive out of possession (only six Premier League midfielders have more combined tackles and interceptions this season) and is blessed with a passing range to cause serious problems.

If he keeps improving at his current rate, Liverpool will be thanking their lucky stars that they didn't splash £50m+ on a new midfielder this summer, particularly when those funds could come in handy as a host of key players' contracts edge closer to expiring.