With Newcastle United's pre-season preparations now in full swing, Eddie Howe has strengthened his squad with the additions of Harvey Barnes and Sandro Tonali this summer.
What players have Newcastle been linked with?
Financial Fair Play constraints mean Newcastle cannot go out and buy every player they like the look of, so the Magpies have to be smart with who exactly they move for beyond Barnes and Tonali.
From full-backs Kieran Tierney and Tino Livramento to central midfielders Scott McTominay and Conor Gallagher, there are no shortage of players the Magpies are said to be interested in.
Another name that has regularly popped up of late is Bayern Munich midfielder Ryan Gravenberch, who could be on his way out of the Allianz Arena – where he is on wages of £152k-a-week, according to Capology – after just one season.
As journalist Rudy Galtetti told GIVEMESPORT, Newcastle are one of the clubs "showing the greatest interest" in the youngster, though any deal with Bayern would be tough to agree.
What position does Ryan Gravenberch play?
Gravenberch spent eight years in Ajax's famed academy before making his senior debut in September 2018, at which point he became the Dutch giants' youngest-ever player in Eredivisie at 16 years and 130 days, surpassing a certain Clarence Seedorf.
The now-21-year-old went on to make a little over 100 appearances for Ajax prior to joining Bayern last summer in a reported €18.5m (£16m) upfront transfer that could rise to €24m (£20m).
However, Gravenberch started just three Bundesliga games for Bayern in his debut season in Bavaria, while appearing a further 21 times from the substitutes' bench.
That lack of playing time is made all the more surprising when you consider the impact Gravenberch had when he was on the field. Indeed, as per FBref's player comparison model, the Dutchman registered very similar figures to Jude Bellingham at Borussia Dortmund last season.
That is quite the company to be in considering Bellingham recently joined Real Madrid for an initial fee of £88.5m.
Signing a player of that quality would be very much welcome from Newcastle's perspective, but links with Gravenberch bring back memories of another Magpies player in Georginio Wijnaldum.
There are plenty of similarities between Gravenberch and Wijnaldum, not least that they are both Netherlands internationals, both play in midfield and both showed plenty of potential at an early age.
Wijnaldum was three years older than Gravenberch when making the move from PSV to Newcastle in 2015 – the first arrival under head coach Steve McClaren, and the highest fee paid at the time for a player under the Mike Ashley stewardship.
That is not to say they are like-for-like players, given Wijnaldum is far more attack-minded than his compatriot. That is reflected in the data, as the former Liverpool midfielder scored 14 goals in his final season in Eredivisie, whereas Gravenberch scored just twice.
Both players had a stature that belied their age during their time in their homeland, though, as Wijnaldum captained PSV for a period before moving on, while Gravenberch skippered Ajax's age-grade sides.
Brian Tevreden, the man who made Gravenberch captain of the U15s when aged just 12, previously described the youngster – via Goal.com – as "a better version than [Paul] Pogba in his best days at Juventus", and a "very dominant" player on the pitch.
Newcastle have a great history of signing Dutch players, from Wijnaldum to Patrick Kluivert, and it may well be that Gravenberch is the next to arrive at St James' Park.
