Both the senior and U21 squads for the upcoming international matches next month do not include Ryan Gravenberch.
The midfielder faced backlash for his earlier this month decision to withdraw from the Netherlands U21 team in favor of staying at the AXA Training Center in an effort to adjust to life at Liverpool.
In a £38.5 million deal that was completed on transfer deadline day, Gravenberch became the Reds’ fourth midfield addition of the summer. He had previously played for Bayern Munich.
It appears that the 21-year-old’s absence for October may have been caused by his decision to skip out on meeting up with his Dutch teammates for their U21 Euros qualifiers against Moldova and North Macedonia.
Michael Reiziger, the manager of his nation’s U21 squad, called it the “wrong choice” for him to turn down the call-up and even warned that it would affect his inclusion in future teams.
Gravenberch “needs to learn” from his choice, according to Reiziger, while senior manager Ronald Koeman noted that he was “not happy” with the decision as well.
Despite playing 11 times for his nation before to Koeman’s arrival, the midfielder has not yet received a first team cap.
Despite having received his first call-up as an 18-year-old back in 2020, Gravenberch’s lack of playing time at Bayern Munich prevented him from earning a spot in the Dutch World Cup squad, and he has since been unable to regain his place in the team.
Although the October squads for the Netherlands are only preliminary, it appears that the Dutch FA treated Gravenberch similarly for prioritizing club over country during the previous international break.
In the upcoming weeks, he will be hoping that his decision to concentrate on getting settled quickly at Anfield will pay off as he seeks to secure a spot in a competitive Liverpool midfield.
