Arne Slot sends Ryan Gravenberch message as Liverpool transfer question answered against Man Utd

Arne Slot paid tribute to Ryan Gravenberch after the Liverpool midfielder shone in Sunday's 3-0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford.

The Netherlands international turned in a superb performance at the base of the midfield

Liverpool tried to sign Real Sociedad's Martin Zubimendi earlier this month for £51m

Gravenberch has since been entrusted to operate as the deepest of the midfield three, with fellow 2023 summer signings Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai also selected in the three games to date.

Asked what makes him convinced that Gravenberch can thrive in the position going forward, Slot offered a glowing appraisal of his Dutch compatriot's ability.

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Slot:

“His quality on the ball could be my first answer,"

“But coming from the Netherlands we all know how good he is with the ball. 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 still how good he is when he arrives in the duel.

“Today you saw with him, Dom and Macca how much they can keep on running.”

"Sometimes you are late and they just kept on running and arriving in the duels. That’s the one thing that impressed me most about him, how good he is also without the ball.

“Only three games have been played, only games from Sunday to Sunday, there’s still a lot for us to prove. “

“I don’t want to be the one that spoils everything, but two years ago was the last time we played in the Champions League and we all know how that season ended."

Slot added:

“With the ball we were hoping we could find every time one of our midfielders open or free.

“But while these three played a very good game, they need their centre-backs to play the ball through the lines and to be close to them when they can’t arrive.

“When that happened, Ibou (Ibrahima Konate) was there and Virgil (van Dijk) was there, every time stepping into midfield defensively also.”

"It was a team performance and, you know me a bit now, it’s always about the team and then the individual can show themselves.

“All 11 of them and the ones who came in played a very good game but there’s no coincidence as the team played really well.

“There is a lot to prove for us, if we play a difficult game in the Champions League and still be good during the weekend."