Liverpool midfielder Ryan Gravenberch has admitted he is looking to take advantage of Marten de Roon’s injury to seal his return to the Netherlands team for Euro 2024.
The midfielder has been speaking to Eindhovens Dagblad after being named as part of Ronald Koeman’s preliminary squad for the tournament in Germany this summer.
The Dutchman has had a far more enjoyable year than the one before, which had seen him sat on the bench and out of the picture at Bayern Munich after a summer move from Ajax.
That prompted his move to Liverpool in the summer and he’s been a regular for them this season, with 26 appearances in the Premier League and 39 across all competitions.
That’s prompted a return to the Netherlands set up, with the midfielder not having played for them since a 12-minute appearance against Montenegro in November 2021.
He was in the squad for the European qualifiers against France and Gibraltar last year but hasn’t been back until this point.
His chances of a place in the final squad have been helped by an injury to De Roon, who will miss the tournament after picking up a hamstring issue.
Gravenberch is aware of that and while the Liverpool midfielder offers his condolences to his teammate, he’s hoping it gives him his chance to seal a return.
“It is a three-day internship and only then will the national coach announce his choice. That’s actually a kind of exam. I’ll just wait and see,” he said.
“It is surprising that I am here. In the sense that I haven’t been here for a long time. But I always had the feeling that they had me in their sights. The national coach also came to Liverpool once.
“Marten is injured and that is first of all very annoying for him. But it does increase my chances of going to Germany. There is now an extra spot available in midfield.
“I haven’t booked a summer holiday yet, haha. We will wait until the final selection. It’s been a long time since I was here. But I’m back, that’s the most important thing. And I am still the Ryan Gravenberch from back then. The qualities are the same. And I want to show that here.”
