Ryan Gravenberch-The Daily Ledger

Ryan Jiro Gravenberch (born 16 May 2002) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Premier League club Liverpool and the Netherlands national team.

Club career

Ajax

Gravenberch joined the Ajax Youth Academy in 2010, and worked his way up through the junior levels. On 7 June 2018, he received the first ever "Abdelhak Nouri Trofee", which recognizes the best talent in the Ajax academy. He signed his first professional contract with Ajax that same day, keeping him at the club until 2023. Gravenberch made his professional debut with Jong Ajax in a 5–2 Eerste Divisie win over FC Dordrecht on 24 August 2018.

Ryan Gravenberch

Gravenberch made his senior debut with Ajax on 23 September 2018, in a 3–0 Eredivisie loss to PSV. Gravenberch became the youngest ever Ajax player to play in the Eredivisie at 16 years and 130 days, surpassing the record of 16 years and 242 days set by Clarence Seedorf.

Ryan Gravenberch

On 25 November 2020, Gravenberch scored his first Champions League goal in a 3–1 win over Midtjylland in the 2020–21 season.

Ryan Gravenberch

On 18 April 2021, Gravenberch scored the first goal in a 2–1 win over Vitesse in the 2021 KNVB Cup Final.

Bayern Munich

On 13 June 2022, Gravenberch signed for Bundesliga club Bayern Munich on a five-year contract. The transfer fee paid to Ajax was a reported €18 million, with an additional €5 million in variables. On 31 August 2022, he scored his first goal and provided an assist in a 5–0 win over Viktoria Köln in the DFB-Pokal.

Liverpool

On 1 September 2023, the final day of the Premier League transfer window, Gravenberch signed for Liverpool on a five-year contract. The fee, officially undisclosed, was reportedly €40 million. On 16 September, Gravenberch made his debut appearance for Liverpool, entering as an extra-time substitute to replace Mohamed Salah in the 93rd minute of what would be a Premier League away victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers. On 21 September, Gravenberch made a lengthy pass into the box to assist Luis Diaz, his first assist for Liverpool, during a Europa League group stage victory against LASK in which his side won 3–1. On 5 October, Gravenberch scored his first goal for Liverpool in a 2–0 win against Union Saint-Gilloise in the UEFA Europa League. On 26 October 2023, he scored his second goal for Liverpool, scoring Liverpool's fourth in a 5-1 win over Toulouse at Anfield in the UEFA Europa League.

International career

Gravenberch is a youth international for the Netherlands. At the age of 16, he played for the Netherlands U19s in a friendly 4–1 loss to the England U19s on 5 September 2018.

He was called up to the senior Netherlands squad in November 2020. He made his debut on 24 March 2021 in a World Cup qualifier against Turkey. On 6 June 2021, Gravenberch scored in an international friendly game against Georgia where the Netherlands won 3–0.

On 4 September 2023, days after signing for Liverpool, Gravenberch declined a call-up to the Netherlands U21s for their European Championship qualification campaign. The team confirmed his absence was a choice to "focus on his new club", with national coach Ronald Koeman and U21s coach Michael Reiziger condemning the decision.