Different Gravy
- Thread starter rurikbird
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That is the superior technical ability we know he possesses. Now Slot has found the best position to utilise him to the very best of his abilities - I don't think anyone saw that coming. People were saying he can't defend - look at his stats (recoveries, tackles) vs United (and Ips + BF), outstanding. And he's still very young. Such a high ceiling still.
I still can't get over his involvement in that disallowed goal, the first touch to take him past Mainoo was breathtakingly good, then striving forward and picking the right pass at the right time....since it ended up being offside in hindsight he may've been better off having a pop with his weaker foot.
There were and still are legitimate concerns about Grav. He's a lazy cunt who probs does loads of beak at the weekend. But he is only a kid. If he's sorted himself out then fair enough. But it's been two weeks of good play against absolute toilet opposition after a year of shit so please forgive me if I still think he's a fucking wankbag
See… you can be sensible, you Top Top Red!!
I have doubts - that Arsenal away performance last season is strong on my mind. But the one very big change in our approach that maybe contributing to his performances and by extension also TAA's defensive performances is that Slot knows how to make use of talented skilled midfielders better than Klopp. My biggest beef with Klopp has been that he was good at training the midfield to press and recover the ball but did not seem to advise or give guidance on how to better use their talents. I get the feeling that Slot can coach midfielders better, and its good to see. All of them in our midfield are ballers - last season I honestly did not think Klopp knew what or how to use Gravy and this impacted my own view of Gravy as being surplus to requirements or trying to work out 'what the fuck is he ?'.
This right here is one of the things I like with Gravy:
View: https://streamable.com/1wqfy6
I know another midfielder who'd just pass it back.
View: https://streamable.com/1wqfy6
I know another midfielder who'd just pass it back.
This is where he will blossom. He has that touch just to run it through a few players, take them out the game and ruin their shape.
Exactly, that touch and awareness was enough to let him bypass their midfield and create the chance that Trent converted but was later ruled to be offside.
United and Ten Hag have been in denial about Casemiro for ages now. Our boys may have just ended his top-level career yesterday (if you can even call United "top-level").
And that touch and turn from Gravy to leave Mainoo flailing is a thing of beauty. Simple, elegant, deadly. Shame about Mo's offside.
More of this please.
And that touch and turn from Gravy to leave Mainoo flailing is a thing of beauty. Simple, elegant, deadly. Shame about Mo's offside.
More of this please.
feels pretty familiar, i think we had similar denial for a bit with fabinho but thankfully he wasn’t on silly money and impossible to shift
One of Liverpool’s main objectives in the summer window was to sign a new central midfielder. The Reds revamped in the middle of the park 12 months ago, bringing in Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch following a number of high-profile exits.
Yet it felt as though there was a piece missing to the midfield puzzle. Liverpool sought to rectify the issue in their pursuit of Martín Zubimendi, but the player’s reluctance to swap sunny San Sebastian for Merseyside was a blow to the club. Unbeknown to many, though, the answer to Liverpool’s midfield problem was already on the books.
When he arrived last summer, Mac Allister was initially used as the deepest lying midfielder in Jürgen Klopp’s favoured 4-3-3 setup, at least until Endo established himself as a key cog. Arne Slot has moved the Reds to a 4-2-3-1 system, however, one he favoured during his time as Feyenoord boss.
The aim, then, was to partner Mac Allister with a more natural holder to grant the Argentinian the freedom to push on and link the two banks of midfield, a system that the 25-year-old thrived in during his time with Brighton. If the opening weeks of the season are anything to go by, then Slot had the solution to this issue all along.
Gravenberch struggled for regular minutes under Klopp last season, making just 12 league starts in his debut campaign at Anfield following his arrival from Bayern Munich. A deadline-day arrival from the Bundesliga side, he could have been perceived as a bit of a panic buy to swell the club’s midfield ranks.
Yet Gravenberch’s early impact this season at the base of the midfield has contributed to Liverpool’s 100% start, with three successive clean sheets to boot. Supporters are no longer yearning for Zubimendi. Gravenberch ranks top for tackles (eight) and interceptions (seven), and second for total passes (176) of all Liverpool players after the opening three games. No Liverpool player has won more ground duels than the young Dutchman (15).
Playing in a 4-2-3-1 isn’t an alien concept for Gravenberch, who excelled as part of a double pivot for Ajax under Erik ten Hag. However, he did so alongside a more natural ball-winning midfielder in Edson Álvarez. Now, Gravenberch is the one that looks to shield the defence and get the ball rolling when he does reclaim possession, and he is doing so impressively.
The Reds eased to a 3-0 win at Manchester United, though they could and should have won by more, and Gravenberch was imperious in the middle of the park. With the games set to come thick and fast following Liverpool’s return to the Champions League – a competition revamped with the addition of two extra games in the league stage – the Reds may dip into the market in the new year to help ease the pressure on Gravenberch and Mac Allister.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/aug/30/federico-chiesa-liverpool-juventus-italy
Following a couple of confidence-sapping spell at Bayern and a hit-and-miss debut campaign at Anfield, Gravenberch has been hugely influential in Liverpool’s flying start to life under the former Feyenoord boss.
“He has to develop in that position, that’s also clear, but he’s comfortable with the ball, he can run, he can keep running,” Slot said of Gravenberch as Liverpool’s No 6 before their season opener at Ipswich last month. At 22, there is plenty of time to improve in the role, while his displays in the wins over Ipswich, Brentford and United has seen Gravenberch exceed early expectations and give hope he might just prove to be the battling midfielder Liverpool have needed for some time now.
Yet it felt as though there was a piece missing to the midfield puzzle. Liverpool sought to rectify the issue in their pursuit of Martín Zubimendi, but the player’s reluctance to swap sunny San Sebastian for Merseyside was a blow to the club. Unbeknown to many, though, the answer to Liverpool’s midfield problem was already on the books.
When he arrived last summer, Mac Allister was initially used as the deepest lying midfielder in Jürgen Klopp’s favoured 4-3-3 setup, at least until Endo established himself as a key cog. Arne Slot has moved the Reds to a 4-2-3-1 system, however, one he favoured during his time as Feyenoord boss.
The aim, then, was to partner Mac Allister with a more natural holder to grant the Argentinian the freedom to push on and link the two banks of midfield, a system that the 25-year-old thrived in during his time with Brighton. If the opening weeks of the season are anything to go by, then Slot had the solution to this issue all along.
Gravenberch struggled for regular minutes under Klopp last season, making just 12 league starts in his debut campaign at Anfield following his arrival from Bayern Munich. A deadline-day arrival from the Bundesliga side, he could have been perceived as a bit of a panic buy to swell the club’s midfield ranks.
Yet Gravenberch’s early impact this season at the base of the midfield has contributed to Liverpool’s 100% start, with three successive clean sheets to boot. Supporters are no longer yearning for Zubimendi. Gravenberch ranks top for tackles (eight) and interceptions (seven), and second for total passes (176) of all Liverpool players after the opening three games. No Liverpool player has won more ground duels than the young Dutchman (15).
Playing in a 4-2-3-1 isn’t an alien concept for Gravenberch, who excelled as part of a double pivot for Ajax under Erik ten Hag. However, he did so alongside a more natural ball-winning midfielder in Edson Álvarez. Now, Gravenberch is the one that looks to shield the defence and get the ball rolling when he does reclaim possession, and he is doing so impressively.
The Reds eased to a 3-0 win at Manchester United, though they could and should have won by more, and Gravenberch was imperious in the middle of the park. With the games set to come thick and fast following Liverpool’s return to the Champions League – a competition revamped with the addition of two extra games in the league stage – the Reds may dip into the market in the new year to help ease the pressure on Gravenberch and Mac Allister.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/aug/30/federico-chiesa-liverpool-juventus-italy
Following a couple of confidence-sapping spell at Bayern and a hit-and-miss debut campaign at Anfield, Gravenberch has been hugely influential in Liverpool’s flying start to life under the former Feyenoord boss.
“He has to develop in that position, that’s also clear, but he’s comfortable with the ball, he can run, he can keep running,” Slot said of Gravenberch as Liverpool’s No 6 before their season opener at Ipswich last month. At 22, there is plenty of time to improve in the role, while his displays in the wins over Ipswich, Brentford and United has seen Gravenberch exceed early expectations and give hope he might just prove to be the battling midfielder Liverpool have needed for some time now.
Interesting comments from Hargreaves who reckons we still need a 6 as neither Gravenberch nor Macca fill that role and all top sides winning titles or the CL have one. Hmmm maybe Slot is starting a new trend then although we maybe nearer to Arsenal than City in terms of midfielders.
I was confused by his comments - does he imply that Gravy and Macca cannot tackle? Because the stats say otherwise! And his insistence that you cannot win with a “conductor” at #6 makes him sound a bit like a football Neanderthal - it’s quite the opposite IMO: you cannot be a top team with a pure destroyer at #6, those days are gone.
Overall, I think the pundits are a step behind the managers in terms of understanding the evolution of football. Some are more than one step behind, mind…
Ha, clearly Virge was in the room for that.
Feel like he's saying that just cos everyone hates Koeman. World class seems impressively premature
Yeah, Gravy has been outstanding but we need more than 3 games to declare world class.
Cf. Szoboslai August 2023
Definitely. I think Gravvy does have world-class potential though. Some of his skills and attributes are absolutely elite.
I'm hoping it's done; at least the zooby part. Be arsed fucking about with him again. Ideally we identify another 6, either as depth, or if the gravy train derails for that position
Hargreaves makes as much sense as Michael Owen. They should start a podcast together.
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