Liverpool look to steal march on Man United in race for Bayern Munich midfielder: report

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp looks on prior to the Premier League match between Manchester City and Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium on April 1, 2023 in Manchester, United Kingdom.
(Image credit: Will Palmer/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)

Liverpool are trying to get their noses in ahead of Manchester United in the battle to sign Bayern Munich midfielder Ryan Gravenberch this summer.

The Dutch international, 20, was linked with both of the Premier League rivals last summer, before ultimately leaving Ajax for Bayern in a £21m move. 

But Gravenberch's first season with the Bundesliga giants has been far from plain sailing – he's made just four starts in all competitions – and Jurgen Klopp is said to be keen to add him to the Reds' midfield ranks.

Ryan Gravenberch of Bayern Munich looks on prior to the Bundesliga match between Bayern Munich and Hoffenheim at the Allianz Arena on April 15, 2023 in Munich, Germany.

Gravenberch made his sole league start for Bayern in February's loss to Borussia Monchengladbach (Image credit: Christina Pahnke – sampics/Corbis via Getty Images)

To that end, Liverpool appear to have already set the wheels in motion: according to Christian Falk of Bild, the Reds have met with Gravenberch's agent about a possible switch to Anfield.

Falk added that Bayern are insisting Gravenberch – who Transfermarkt currently value at €30m (£26.8m) – is not for sale, but German outlet Fussball Transfers claim that Liverpool haven't been deterred by that stance and are determined to get a deal done.

Gravenberch has made 18 appearances for Bayern – but 17 of those have come from the bench, and he's featured for only 27 minutes combined under new boss Thomas Tuchel.

The early signs are that he won't play a major part in Tuchel's plans going forward, so he may well try to push for an exit in the next transfer window.

Ryan Gravenberch of the Netherlands warms up prior to the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match between the Netherlands and Gibraltar at De Kuip on March 27, 2023 in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Gravenberch returned to the Netherlands squad for last month's Euro 2024 qualifiers (Image credit: Peter Lous/BSR Agency/Getty Images)

Arsenal have also been linked with Gravenberch, who has won 22 caps for the Netherlands – although his lack of playing time for Bayern cost him a spot in his country's 2022 World Cup squad.

Barring an unfathomably disastrous end to the campaign, the Gunners would be able to offer Gravenberch Champions League football in 2022/23 – while Man United are well on track to return to the competition too.

Liverpool, on the other hand, look set to have to settle for a Europa League place at best – although, given his nightmare time at Bayern so far and the crucial developmental stage of his career he's at, his main consideration simply has to be playing more regularly.

More Liverpool stories

Liverpool are being linked with players all over Europe ahead of what could be a busy summer of business at Anfield: Josko Gvardiol, Aurelien Tchouameni and Nicolo Barella are among the club's potential targets.

In terms of outgoings, Roberto Firmino – who will leave Liverpool as a free agent at the end of the season – could be heading to Real Madrid.

Meanwhile, former Red Sadio Mane has been tipped for a quick Premier League return with Manchester United– after coming to blows with Bayern Munich teammate Leroy Sane after their Champions League defeat to City earlier this week.

Tom Hancock

Tom Hancock started freelancing for FourFourTwo in April 2019 and has also written for the Premier League and Opta Analyst, among others. He supports Wycombe Wanderers and has a soft spot for Wealdstone. A self-confessed statto, he has been known to watch football with a spreadsheet (or several) open...