Ryan Gravenberch revealed his mental struggles following his 2022 transfer to Bayern Munich, describing the experience as a nightmare. According to his father, the midfielder was on the verge of depression.
Gravenberch played a key role under Arne Slot as Liverpool secured the Premier League title. However, he is only now sharing his story about the disastrous year at Bayern, where he only started three Bundesliga games in his debut season.
Mentally challenging
In an interview with Helden Magazine, the midfielder said, "I went crazy in my head. Luckily, my parents moved to Munich because of me. I don't know what would have happened if I had been there alone...it was mentally very tough."
Gravenberch's father, also named Ryan, believes his son would have fallen into depression had he been alone in Munich: "I think if we hadn't been there with him, he would have become depressed."
During this difficult period, the Dutchman won the league title with Bayern, but it didn't feel like a victory. "I was happy that we were champions, but my contribution was small. We were there as champions, but I didn't feel like a champion. It was a very different feeling from all the other times I'd won trophies," he recalled.
Julian Nagelsmann
The Dutch international, who played under Julian Nagelsmann at Bayern, explained why he "started to go crazy" under the German coach: "I spent three games in a row watching my team from the bench for 90 minutes. That's when I started to go crazy in my head. By winter, I was fed up. In the last two months of the season, under Thomas Tuchel, I had more playing time than in the entire previous period."
"I remember well how I felt at Bayern, but I know I got out of that hole. And that's what I'm proud of," he emphasized. He has since found happiness and regular playing time at Liverpool, who paid €40 million for him in 2023.