NewsRyan Gravenberch: I'm proud of the season, I showed myself again
Ryan Gravenberch has spoken of his pride in being able to ‘show myself to the world again’ after a leading role in Liverpool’s Premier League title success.
A Carabao Cup winner during his debut season with the Reds in 2023-24, the midfielder was integral to the clinching of the club’s 20th championship this term.
Switched to a deeper position in midfield by Arne Slot, he started all 34 games that led to his team being confirmed as uncatchable at the summit in April.
Gravenberch, whose form earned a recall to the Netherlands’ international set-up too, was subsequently named the Premier League Young Player of the Season.
The No.38 has further bolstered a remarkable medal collection that already included league triumphs at home with Ajax and in Germany with Bayern Munich.
“The realisation about how much I have won so far isn’t quite there yet. Maybe it will come later,” he said. “It all goes so fast.
“Of course, I know that winning the Premier League is one of the biggest prizes you can win. For the past four weeks, it has just been a big celebration. The celebrations and the bus ride were wonderful to experience.
“It has been a super-great season and that makes me proud. The Premier League is the strongest league in the world. I showed myself to the world again and achieved my goals.”
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Watch on YouTubeOn the role change he was given by Slot last summer, Gravenberch added: “When the coach told me about where he wanted me to play, I just thought, ‘When can I start?’
“I knew I could do it, even though defensively I sometimes had my doubts. I do think I took a big step forward because it actually went naturally.
“From the first training session it went pretty well. As the season went on, opponents started to put a different pressure on us and closed us down through the middle. But that created space somewhere else. It was up to us to find the free players.
“How did I do that physically? Good question. It’s a matter of recovering well, where the people at Liverpool also deserve a big compliment. Football has become a running sport – running, running, running.
“The intensity is of course higher than before, especially in the Premier League. I have that by nature. I can run. But at Ajax, the emphasis in training was more on technique and positional play. In England, you have to run a lot more.”