UPDATE 1-Takeaway CEO says he wants partnerships, not sale, for Grubhub

(Adds quotes from CEO)

AMSTERDAM, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Food delivery company Just Eat Takeaway.com has no plans to sell its U.S. subsidiary Grubhub, the company's chief executive said on Wednesday, but it is actively looking for strategic partnerships for the business.

Takeaway bought Grubhub for $7.3 billion in June, but has since faced calls from investors to sell it due to competitive pressures in both the U.S. and at its core European operations.

"Anything that strengthens the business, we'll look at it," CEO Jitse Groen said, including partnerships with logistics companies or major U.S. grocery chains.

Groen, who was speaking by video link at the Morgan Stanley TMT conference, said the company, Europe's largest in meal delivery, expects to announce partnerships in grocery delivery in several markets "very quickly."

"We're going to be very big in grocery," he said.

Groen said he is confident Takeaway can defend its market share in Germany from competitors including Doordash, which last week entered European markets with an $8 billion acquisition of Finland-based food delivery company Wolt. (Reporting by Toby Sterling Editing by Chris Reese and Leslie Adler)