Erik ten Hag is told a clear 'no' in the battle for De Jong alternative

Imre Himmelbauer

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:37 CDT
• 4 min read

Bayern Munich have no intention of selling Ryan Gravenberch.

Both Manchester United and Liverpool hope to attract the 21-year-old Netherlands star. Indeed, he could be an attractive alternative for Frenkie de Jong for Man Utd, with a stay at Barcelona looking increasingly likely.

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Bayern’s management would like to keep the midfielder, despite the fact that he has struggled to earn playing time since making a move from Ajax last summer.

"Manchester United will struggle if they want to get Gravenberch," according to Christian Falk of Bild. "Bayern do not want to sell the Dutchman, something they have told Liverpool before. Gravenberch's management has already been informed of this."

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Gravenberch a long-time target for Ten Hag

Capped 11 times for his country, Gravenberch was previously approached by Ten Hag last summer, but he had already given his agreement to move to Bayern at the time.

The highly rated 21-year-old was sold to FCB by Ajax for just €18.5 million because he had an expiring contract. However, his playing time this season has been limited to just 845 minutes over 31 games.

Gravenberch has been was good for a goal and an assist, both in the cup match against modest Viktoria Koln. The playmaker, meanwhile, has only been named in the starting XI for five matches this term.

Unlike Bayern, Gravenberch himself reportedly likes the idea of a transfer. The patience of the former Ajax player has been slowly running out.

At the end of April, he expressed his dissatisfaction with the situation in Voetbal International.

"A year of training and playing at the top level is nice and instructive. Although it’s mainly been training. That has to change next season, when I really want to play weekly again. I haven't spoken to the club management yet, so I will wait and see and see what happens. But it is clear that this role does not meet my expectations," he warned.

Gravenberch is still regarded as a player with terrific potential, with data analytics experts SciSports even suggesting he could become superior to De Jong. It would be frustrating, then, for United if they were to miss out on him.