Ryan Gravenberch Explains His Decision to Take the Number 38 Shirt

Ryan Gravenberch sat down during the international break and talked about his football idols growing up, his favorite Liverpool players, and the importance of the number 38 shirt.

At this point, writing about football players should stop making me feel old, but hearing that Ryan Gravenberch spent his childhood looking up to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo shows how close I am to ordering off the seniors menus at restaurants.

His favorite Liverpool player is unsurprising as well. He chose Steven Gerrard, though he did add that, “also, I played with him at Bayern, Sadio Mane. I think I have a few.”

Other interesting, fluffy tidbits revealed were that Andy Robertson is the funniest player on the team and that apparently Liverpool listen to the song Run This Town by Jay-Z, Rihanna, and Kanye West before every game.

When asked about his number 38 shirt, Gravenberch said that it has special meaning for him.

“My decision for 38 was because I made my debut in Ajax with 38,” he said. “When I went to Bayern I chose also 38 because I have something special with that number because I made my debut [with it]. I think I will keep wearing 38 for, I think, all my life.”

While Gravenberch hasn’t exploded onto the team like Dominik Szoboszlai, his steady improvements and integration into Jürgen Klopp’s team have been promising early on in the season.