Liverpool could be prepared to give Ryan Gravenberch a gross weekly wage of £200,000 in order to bring him to Anfield, according to reports.
Rumours regarding a possible summer move for the Bayern Munich midfielder have accelerated in recent days, with reliable Dutch journalist Mike Verweij reporting for De Telegraaf that the 20-year-old’s camp have met with the Reds, adding that the player is open to a Premier League switch.
It now seems that the Merseyside club are willing to dig deep if that’s what it takes to clinch a deal for the Netherlands youngster.
As per The Mirror, Liverpool would need to give him a contract of £200,000 per week to match his current terms at the Allianz Arena, where he takes home £100,000 weekly after tax.
However, those figures weren’t deemed an obstacle when a delegation from the Reds spoke to Gravenberch’s representatives in Amsterdam last week, with FSG hoping that Bayern will be receptive to selling the player if the £16.3m transfer fee paid to Ajax in 2022 is met.
If indeed Liverpool agree a £200,000-per-week contract with the 20-year-old, it would make him the joint-third highest player at Anfield alongside Thiago and surpassed only by Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah (FBref).
He currently earns just over £156k per week (gross) in Munich (FBref), so moving up to £200k wouldn’t be a monumental leap, although he’d still be out-earning a number of Reds players who’ve contributed plenty to the club over a number of years.
Some may argue that it’d be an excessive pay packet for a midfielder who doesn’t turn 21 until May and has only started once in the Bundesliga all season (Transfermarkt), although Gravenberch has already turned heads in his fledgling career.
His tally of 130 senior appearances combined for Ajax and Bayern is very impressive for someone of his age, in addition to winning 11 caps for Netherlands (Transfermarkt).
He’s also earned some ringing endorsements, with Brian Tevreden (his former youth coach in Amsterdam) labelling him ‘dominant’ and 1988 European Championships winner Wim Kieft calling him his country’s ‘greatest talent’ (as per Liverpool Echo).
FSG have a reputation for being parsimonious, but if indeed they’re willing to make Gravenberch our joint-third best player, it’s a strong show of faith and indicates just how determined they are to try and bring this deal to fruition.