In the match against Liverpool in round 3 of the Premier League, two new players of Man United Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt were both given the opportunity to start by Erik ten Hag. Both were former students of Ten Hag and played for Bayern Munich before joining Old Trafford this summer.
However, it was Liverpool's new signing Ryan Gravenberch who left the biggest impression as The Kop defeated Man United 3-0. Perhaps, this is the former Ajax player that Ten Hag misses the most at the moment.
Gravenberch immediately made his mark on Trent Alexander-Arnold's disallowed goal. But he didn't have to regret it for long, as the Dutch midfielder then intercepted Casemiro's pass to set up Luis Diaz for the opener. It was one of four successful interceptions Gravenberch made throughout the match.
It was also the most successful interceptions by a Liverpool midfielder in almost a year. Gravenberch has become a true defensive midfielder under new coach Arne Slot, although most of his defensive actions have taken place in the opposition half.
At Bayern Munich, Julian Nagelsmann and Thomas Tuchel had doubts about Gravenberch's defensive abilities and often pushed him forward, so Slot himself admitted he was surprised by the Dutchman's performance against Man United.
"Gravenberch's quality on the ball would be my first answer. Coming from Holland, we all know how good he is on the ball. He can be a really important player for our build-up.
But what impressed me the most when I started working with him was that he could run a lot and still be good when he got into a one-on-one. That's what impressed me the most about him, he's so good even without the ball" - Slot said after the win over Man United.
Gravenberch ran over 11km against Man United, the second time he has reached that mark for Liverpool. In fact, all three of Liverpool's starting midfielders covered over 11km in the game at Old Trafford.
It can be said that Gravenberch's first season at Liverpool did not really go as expected. Therefore, it is not surprising that there are a series of rumors about the "Red Brigade" buying more midfielders this summer. However, it seems that Gravenberch is the ready answer that Slot has found.
