Liverpool may have Sadio Mane to thank for playing a small role in seeing Ryan Gravenberch move to Merseyside in 2023, with the former winger singing the club’s praises.
Gravenberch shared a dressing room with Mane at Bayern Munich the season before he made the switch to Liverpool, with the duo sharing the pitch 20 times before they both went their separate ways.
Mane left for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr in the summer of 2023 while Jurgen Klopp poached the out-of-favour midfielder away from the Allianz in a transfer that has proven a masterstroke.
Liverpool only secured the Dutchman’s signature on the final day of the window, but there had been months of speculation and discussions behind the scenes, including a chat with Mane.
Talking in an episode of Liverpool’s ‘A Day With’, Gravenberch discussed his exit from Bayern and his time alongside one of the best wingers to grace the Anfield pitch.
“Sadio is a really nice guy,” Gravenberch said. “When I was in Munich, I asked him also about Liverpool, if it’s like a good step for me and how the club was and everything.
“He said a lot of good things. So, in my head I was like, ‘I have to go!’”
The immediate reply from host Rubi Deschamps was, “Basically Sadio sold you [the move]?” and Gravenberch responded with an enthusiastic “Yeah!” as the pair shared a laugh.
Thanks, Sadio – once a Red, always a Red!
Life under Slot
Gravenberch’s debut season under Klopp ended with 21 starts from 38 appearances, but it is Arne Slot who has tapped into the 22-year-old’s potential to see him become an integral member of the team.
On his countryman’s arrival, Gravenberch said: “I knew him because I played against him when he was at Feyenoord.
“The first conversation was on the phone, he called me and he asked me how I was feeling and how he sees me in the team, as a No. 6 and as a No. 8.
“Before I came here that was also the positions I liked to play – more the No. 8 than the No. 6 – but this season he put me on the No. 6 and done really well.
On the reception from fans, he added: “It feels really nice because this is what you want, playing football, playing for such a big club and playing good as well, so the feeling is really nice. I hope I can keep this feeling.”
