RONALD KOEMAN has admitted he holds a grudge against Ryan Gravenberch.
The midfielder joined Liverpool in a £34million transfer from Bayern Munich in the summer.
While doing so the Dutch international snubbed a call up from the Netherlands Under 21 team in September in order to focus on his move to Anfield.
However, having played just 285 minutes under Jurgen Klopp, his snub has come back to bite him.
This is because Dutch team boss Koeman has omitted Gravenberch from national team selection.
The former Southampton and Everton manager had been left fuming at Gravenberch for his refusal to play in September.
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In his latest press conference ahead of Euro 2024 qualifiers against France and Greece, Koeman admitted he is still bitter about it and explained it was part of the reason why he had refused to call him up.
He said: “We do have a certain opinion about cancelling for the Dutch Juniors or the Dutch national team.
“But I don’t think he has played much yet. Last Thursday there was a competition.
“I still think he is a great talent. I hope he can develop at Liverpool and play more, because then he will always be a player for the Dutch national team.”
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The omission comes despite a slew of injuries for Holland.
The Oranje are without the services of Frenkie de Jong, Matthijs de Ligt, Steven Berghuis, Teun Koopmeiners, Memphis Depay, Premier League star Mark Flekken and Liverpool ace Cody Gakpo.
But this opinion was shared with U21 coach Michael Reiziger, who likewise refused to call Gravenberch up for their own October fixtures against Georgia and Gibraltar U21’s.
Reiziger previously told Dutch outlet Nu: “Nigel de Jong (technical director at Dutch FA) has been in contact with Gravenberch, but I have not.
“It was not an option to call him up now. The signal has now been sent to him, but you are still working with a group. It is something you have to want to be part of.”
Gravenberch has earned 11 caps for the senior team, but last played in September 2022 despite also earning a call up in March of this year.
He scored his first Reds goal last week in their 2-0 Europa League win over Union Saint-Gilloise.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
