Liverpool and Man Utd transfer truth proven again as Klopp wins $43m battle

Ryan Gravenberch is the latest in a long line of players to choose Liverpool over Manchester United. It is a reminder to Jürgen Klopp of the power his club holds.

First Look At Ryan Gravenberch In Liverpool Colours After Reds Make Deadline Day Signing

Two households, both alike in dignity. In fair Premier League, where we lay our scene. From ancient grudge to break new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

Enough of the English literature lesson, it’s time to enjoy ourselves. Ignore the Montagues and Capulets, we’re here to talk about the biggest families in the Premier League: Liverpool and Manchester United.

It’s fair to say the former has the bragging rights in the head-to-head at present. United might have taken one of the meetings last season, but the aggregate score is still 21-4 to the Reds across the last five clashes between the teams. Take that, Tybalt.

Of course, these days bragging rights are about more than what unfolds on the hallowed turfs of Anfield and Old Trafford. Or at least they are for certain fans. To some people, ‘winning’ the transfer window is more important than what the clubs are in business for in the first place, namely winning football matches and trophies.

If your team can sign a player whom your rivals were looking to purchase, all the better. This appears to be the case with Ryan Gravenberch, who joined Liverpool for $43m (£34m/€40m) when Manchester United was also interested in obtaining the 21-year-old Netherlands international.

“Man United fans fume at Ryan Gravenberch transfer development” is a recent Manchester Evening News headline, which should please Liverpool supporters who live for the banter.

But rather than gloating purely because an individual chose your club instead of your mate’s, it’s wiser to be enthused about what the decision means in terms of the bigger picture.

After all, Gravenberch isn’t the first player to favor the Reds over the Red Devils. It’s less than a year since Cody Gakpo was in a similar position and an article in The Mirror from 2021 lists Roberto Firmino, Fabinho, Sadio Mané, Virgil van Dijk and Takumi Minamino as players who joined Liverpool when United were hoping to sign them.

Can you imagine where the Reds would be without those players’ contributions? Minamino was the top scorer in their last two trophy wins, after all.

Ryan Gravenberch is officially a Liverpool player, arriving for $43m from Bayern Munich.
Ryan Gravenberch is officially a Liverpool player, arriving for $43m from Bayern Munich.

And let’s not forget that the top brass at Old Trafford tried to wow Jürgen Klopp, failing spectacularly with their pitch.

According to Raphael Honigstein in his biography of the Liverpool manager, ‘Bring The Noise’, United’s then executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward “told Klopp that the Theatre of Dreams was ‘like an adult version of Disneyland’, a mythical place where, as the nickname suggested, the entertainment was world class and dreams came true.”

It turns the stomach, doesn’t it? No wonder Klopp supposedly found it a bit ‘unsexy’. It’s hard to imagine a pitch that would appeal less to the German managerial genius.

In the 1990s, these sorts of snubs would’ve been utterly unthinkable at United. The 10 mostly fallow years the club has endured in the wake of Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement has enabled Liverpool to first close the gap and then overtake their fierce rivals.

As things stand, the Red Devils could perhaps argue the scales have swung their way again. Erik ten Hag steered his new side to a trophy and Champions League qualification in 2022/23, while Liverpool was enduring its worst campaign under Klopp.

But that doesn’t mean that United is the better longer-term bet. While far from perfect, Klopp’s side has navigated tricky matches at Chelsea and Newcastle while its Mancunian rivals have stumbled through narrow victories against Wolves and Nottingham Forest. The two most successful clubs in English football should be far more closely matched this season.

And the decisions made by Gravenberch, Gakpo and the rest only accentuate the point further: the truth is, despite missing out on the top four last season, Anfield is a more appealing destination. It remains advantage Liverpool in the battle of Romeo and Juliet.