Ryan Gravenberch’s verdict on Man United is great news for Erik ten Hag amid

“I’m glad I had him as a trainer,” said Ryan Gravenberch upon Erik ten Hag’s switch to Manchester United last year.

The midfielder was paying the compliment as he was embarking on pastures new too, the Dutchman preparing for life in Germany with Bayern Munich. There initially had been rumours he was also headed to Old Trafford.

Lisandro Martinez and Antony made that trip but Gravenberch had already shaken hands elsewhere. “I already had such a good feeling at Bayern and I had given my word,” he explained.

The 21-year-old has not had the impact in Bavaria he would have hoped for. He has made just three Bundesliga starts since his move over a year ago. Even a change of manager did not help as Julian Nagelsmann was replaced by Thomas Tuchel.

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It led to a very candid assessment of his maiden year this summer: “I expected to play more minutes than I did. I thought I would get some more chances.

“It’s about just wanting to play, that’s the most important thing at my age. I hope this can happen at Bayern Munich, otherwise we’ll just have to look further.

“I told everyone that I don’t want another year like that. Of course you can’t always be in the starting XI, but you can still play regularly, you can get a lot of minutes.”

That may have grabbed the attention of United and Ten Hag, who nurtured him through to senior football at Ajax. He had told Gravenberch to be patient and be as reliable as ever in the Dutch club’s youth team with the promise that this would earn him a place in the senior side.

He duly was and became the latest academy product to successfully break into the first team, soon becoming a regular. Now, Ten Hag is searching for a pivot again, only this time at Old Trafford.

With summer signing Mason Mount and rising star Kobbie Mainoo injured, United look short on options in midfield. Ideally, a partner or back-up to Casemiro would be signed.

Sofyan Amrabat is unlikely to be captured by United should he leave Fiorentina despite months of speculation. Defensive midfielders are at a premium this summer with the likes of Moises Caicedo and Declan Rice going for fees north of £100m.

Gravenberch would cost significantly less but the fee required still might not be within United’s budget meaning a loan could be on the cards, especially this late in the window. After all, Ten Hag is clearly on good terms with his former club having loaned Marcel Sabitzer in January.

It would be up to Gravenberch to decide if he fancies a season in the Premier League under his old boss, a coach who gave him his first break in senior football. If his aforementioned assessment of Ten Hag was good, then his compliments about United were even better.

Upon signing for Bayern, the youngster acknowledged the interest from United and told De Telegraaf: “Manchester United is a very big and beautiful club.”

He…