Chelsea paid $57m for Ryan Gravenberch transfer for liverpool same benefits
With Chelsea in the process of signing Manchester City’s Cole Palmer, Ryan Gravenberch would allow Liverpool to shrewdly avoid a homegrown players dilemma.
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Jürgen Klopp sanctioned an overhaul of his squad earlier this summer, with a whole host of his seasoned lieutenants leaving Liverpool as the German coach attempted to construct his next great team. Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Roberto Firmino and Naby Keïta all explored the exit door, with the Reds learning from their mistakes last term.
A renovation job was certainly required on Merseyside, but Klopp has encountered quite a glaring issue after allowing certain players to depart, specifically Henderson, Milner and Oxlade-Chamberlain. All three of those players had one thing in common, as they each possessed homegrown status.
For context, for a player to be considered homegrown, he must have played for an FA-affiliated club for at least three years before turning 21 years old. Klopp has signed Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Wataru Endō so far this summer, with none of those players meeting that criteria.
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As Klopp has navigated the transfer window, he has seemingly realized the issue over time, with several of the homegrown players remaining in his squad having relatively uncertain futures. Fábio Carvalho, for example, was loaned to RB Leipzig just a few months ago after failing to establish himself in his debut campaign at Anfield, and Nat Phillips and Caoimhín Kelleher have also been tipped for potential moves away in the near future.
Joe Gomez is another who has homegrown status attached to his profile, but although the English defender looks relatively safe for now, anything could happen regarding a move away from Merseyside in the future given his ongoing struggles to showcase real consistency since his year-long injury in 2020.
Klopp needs more homegrown contributors in his squad, which perhaps explains why Liverpool was interested in Chelsea’s Levi Colwill earlier this summer. Indeed, the Blues agreed a $57m (£45m/€52m) deal to sign Cole Palmer from Manchester City this week, despite the youngster having made just 19 appearances in the Premier League. He is so expensive mainly because of his homegrown status.
The Reds don’t have many non-homegrown spaces left, which is why a move for Ryan Gravenberch appears interesting. With less than 48 hours remaining of the window, Klopp is trying to attract the Bayern Munich midfielder to England. Indeed, The Athletic broke the news that a $43m (£34m/€40m) deal has been agreed.
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The Dutchman is a capable talent with a high ceiling attached to his name, although he hasn’t been presented with much of a chance to shine in the Bundesliga, making just three starts since moving to Germany from the Netherlands last year.
Gravenberch is consequently interested in a move. He is an encouraging starlet who looks destined for big things, hence Liverpool’s interest, but it is also worth noting that he would allow the Reds to exploit a loophole of sorts regarding Klopp’s squad for the current campaign.
