[ad_1]
We have to start talking about Harvey Elliott, right?
When he arrived from Fulham just over a year ago, there was a lot of enthusiasm, which is unusual for a player of just 16 years old with very little experience in the Premier League. Liverpool knew he had talent and took the opportunity to bring him to Anfield.
His first year was one you would expect from a young man starting at a big club. A handful of first-team appearances, mostly in national cup competitions, but it has been clear from the start that there is a lot of potential on his shoulders.
And then came the summer, when it was unlikely that he would have a regular opportunity in Liverpool’s first team this season, despite his obvious talent. You have to remember that he is still very young in terms of a professional footballer, and he still needs to develop his game.
Jurgen Klopp thought the same and approved the change to Blackburn Rovers. As you would expect from a club that had high hopes for one of their young talents, Liverpool were very selective in letting Elliott go on loan. It had to be the right fit for all parties, especially Elliott himself.
Moving to a new team isn’t easy, but Elliott has made it look like that at Ewood Park. Two goals and three assists in 10 appearances for Blackburn are not negligible, especially for someone so young.
But when it comes to talent and potential, it doesn’t matter how old you are. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough, and that should always be the mantra of clubs across the country.
Recently there has been talk of how Liverpool are beginning to prepare for life after Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino. All three cannot play forever, and it would take a large amount of cash to replace them directly in the transfer market.
So you won’t be surprised to see a solution come from within. More specifically in reference to the aforementioned Elliott.
Are you ready to replace Salah, for example, right now? No, but he is still 17 years old and learning what kind of player he is. Was Salah a world-class winger when he was the same age? Definitely not, he arrived with time and a solid development plan, as well as wanting to improve and succeed.
Part of Klopp’s agreement to extend his contract with Liverpool until 2024 was to prepare the club for the future and after he leaves Anfield. This will include looking at the young players who will be the future, and we are already seeing that with Curtis Jones and Neco Williams making great strides in the last 12 months.
Your content written from Liverpool, but done differently and straight to your inbox.
You know what it is about, that it offers you the best in-depth, alternative and current content, but it also takes Liverpool, the Football Club and the city to wherever you are in the world.
If you’re too busy to scroll or search, simply sign up for our newsletter to receive your daily selection of written content, from transfers to tactics, delivered directly to your inbox. You will also receive a weekly summary personally written by the editor, as well as the opportunity to stay up-to-date with any of the latest offers and exclusives we have.
All angles of the champions covered.
For all Liverpool fans on the planet.
How do you register?
It’s easy and only takes a few seconds.
Just type your email address in the box at the top of this article and click “Subscribe.”
And that’s it, you are ready.
Elliott is following a trajectory that could see him follow a similar path, but if he were to make a top-three spot in the long run, it would be a much tougher test. It is one that can happen, that is for sure, if the development plan that is underway for its future is correct.
Liverpool will need to replace Salah at some point in the next few years, perhaps sooner depending on his form and whether or not the club decides to offer him a new contract. As a result of this talk, some big names in soccer have been linked as potential newcomers.
Jadon Sancho, Kylian Mbappe , Erling Haaland. These are just a series of names that will be tentatively linked to Liverpool in recent months, and they will undoubtedly be among the superstars of the modern game for years to come.
But could Liverpool have a superstar in the making of their own? In Sancho’s case, Manchester City had him on their books before the player decided to leave for good in favor of regular first-team football at Borussia Dortmund.
Sancho didn’t see a clear path to the first team at the Etihad, which was ultimately why he decided to leave. Man City were at the beginning of their back-to-back title win streak, so it was unlikely that Sancho would make the squad at a young age. But it was not about now, but about the future.
This is where Liverpool will have to be careful not to make a similar mistake with Elliott. What they do have on their side, however, is that the player himself is a fan of the club, so that could be very useful to them in the future.
And Elliott himself will know that while he may not be ready at the moment to make the first team at Anfield, Klopp will have assured him that there will be opportunities for years to come. Could he be the Salah replacement that has been talked about?
It all comes down to a few things. First of all, patience on Elliott’s part to make sure that even if first-team opportunities don’t flow for years to come, he is still focused on being the best player he can be.
Second, it’s about Liverpool’s development plan. Learning from what Man City did with Sancho and making sure to keep their star players, convincing them that they have what it takes to get into the first team if they work hard and show their commitment to improve. And of course it is important that everyone does not get too carried away by his performances, and also has patience not to demand too much from such a young player.
Elliott is a player with great potential, but it is important that everyone be patient with his development. He certainly has the talent, but he has to develop himself in the right way to become the player that everyone associated with Liverpool knows he is capable of being.
[ad_2]
