“He played outstanding today” - Liverpool boss Arne Slot reveals inspiration behind 22-year-old star’s performance in UCL win over AC Milan

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has praised Ryan Gravenberch after the Dutchman shone in their 3-1 UEFA Champions League win against AC Milan at the San Siro on Tuesday (September 17). Slot reckons Gravenberch was inspired by Milan's past Netherlands legends such as Marco van Basten and Ruud Gullit.

The Reds bounced back from their 1-0 Premier League home defeat to Nottingham Forest over the weekend (September 14). Despite conceding early against Milan, courtesy of Christian Pulisic's third-minute goal, the Reds dominated the rest of the game, with Ibrahima Konate (23'), Virgil van Dijk (41'), and Dominik Szoboszlai (67') scoring one goal apiece.

In his new role under Arne Slot, Gravenberch was deployed as Liverpool's No. 6 once again. His excellent start to the season continued as he dominated the midfield, making 10 recoveries and seven interceptions, winning the Player of the Match award in the process.

Following the game, Slot said (via Liverpool ECHO):

“He took the occasion of playing at a stadium where a lot of Dutch players played unbelievably well (in the past). Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard and afterwards someone else (Clarence Seedorf, stood near him) came over here to do the same things as the other three. Ryan played outstanding today but he wasn’t the only one."

He added:

“[The midfield] is a combination of energy and quality on the ball. I think the most successful team of Liverpool in recent years had three ‘animals’ or ‘dogs’ or however you want to call it, very hard-working players in the midfield."

“These three work very hard in midfield as well and they don’t fight with the ball so it means they are quite comfortable on it. That’s what you like to see as we like to press high, be really aggressive in what we try to do, but we also like to play out from the back and create our chances like this. That’s what they did today," Slot concluded.

With three points, the Reds are currently third in the Champions League standings in the new format. Bayern Munich and Aston Villa are ahead on goal difference.

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"It was very good to see" - Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk speaks out after AC Milan win

Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk conveyed his satisfaction to the club's media after his side responded strongly to their 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Saturday. He credited the Reds for staying calm and looking for a solution following their 3-1 comeback UCL win against AC Milan on Tuesday.

Van Dijk said (via Liverpool's official website):

"Obviously, it was very disappointing at the weekend in so many ways, especially the last part of that game. It was very frustrating to witness and be part of, but we had a chance to put it right and I think we did."

He continued:

"Like I said, a shaky start with the goal that we conceded; that started from the side, we were late, everywhere we were late and they capitalised on it. But after that, the way we stayed calm and kept playing and kept looking for the solution, it was very good to see."

The Reds had slightly more possession with 51 percent of the ball. However, it was no contest up front as they landed 23 shots in total, with 11 being on target. The visitors were also guilty of missing two big chances as Mohamed Salah hit the crossbar twice. In contrast, Milan had just eight shots, with two on target.