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Ryan Gravenberch has explained the differences between Arne Slot and Jurgen Klopp, and how life under Liverpool’s new head coach “feels more comfortable.”
Gravenberch has started the season in great form.
Deployed in the No. 6 role, the midfielder has flourished and has made the position his own during the club’s opening three Premier League matches.
Now the 22-year-old is back in the Netherlands senior national team and preparing to take on Bosnia & Herzegovina and Germany in the UEFA Nations League this month.
Ahead of the game, Gravenberch has been speaking to his country’s media, opening up about life under Liverpool’s new head coach and even responding to criticism seemingly directed to him by Ronald Koeman.
Gravenberch loving life under Slot
Having failed to bring in a No. 6 this summer, Gravenberch has been used in the position more out of necessity rather than anything else.
But he has surprised many with the ease in which he has adjusted to the switch, and the midfielder has credited Slot’s tactics for his ability to settle quickly.
“The coach knows that I have a lot of football in me,” Gravenberch said as per De Volkskrant.
“He has a clear plan, with the build-up, with the pressing. It is up to me to maintain that and be consistent.
“He gave me the chance from the start. I had to focus on a certain position. A bit more defensive. I do my thing and that works out well.
“That has to do with myself and with the coach. There was clarity from the start. We play as a team, and then the individual also looks better.”
The differences between Slot and Klopp
When asked if he feels like a player ‘reborn’ Gravenberch pushed back on those claims, but did explain how he feels more at ease with Slot’s style of play over Klopp’s.
“No, that’s all exaggerated. I’m the same Gravenberch,” he said as per Trouw, before explaining the difference in playing styles between the current and former Liverpool bosses.
“I sometimes had matches where I only touched the ball after five minutes,” said Gravenberch about playing under Klopp last season.
“Then I don’t get into my game, I don’t get into my rhythm. This feels more comfortable to me.”
Gravenberch said he is used to playing consistently at Ajax regardless of any mistakes, but has had to adjust to different standards since moving abroad:
“At Ajax; I played everything there. Even when things went a bit less well for a few matches. That is different abroad.”
Pushing back on Koeman claims
Earlier this week, Gravenberch also came under veiled criticism from Netherlands coach Koeman, who hinted at the youngster having been ‘lazy’ in the past, but he has pushed back on those claims.
“Everyone tells me that I am nonchalant. It is just in me,” he admitted.
“I started well at Liverpool and now I also carry those characteristics with me, but you don’t hear that when things are going well. Everyone makes mistakes.”
Gravenberch will hope to prove Koeman wrong on the pitch, too, with the Netherlands playing their first game of the international break on Saturday against Bosnia & Herzegovina.
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