Arne Slot reaction to Harvey Elliott in training hints at Liverpool transfer exit

Yahoo

a day ago

Harvey Elliott is enjoying his summer away from Liverpool, that's for sure.
The 22-year-old has played a pivotal role for England Under-21s in Slovenia, scoring four goals in five starts for the Three Lions. That's just one start fewer than he managed in the entirety of the 2024/25 campaign at club level.
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But Elliott's successes this summer have acted as a reminder of the player's immense talent. His two-goal haul in the semifinals set up Saturday's decider against Germany, where Elliott could win consecutive Under-21 Euros. He was the standout player in the 2-1 victory over the Netherlands, a performance he hopes can convince one particular Dutchman of his worth.
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Yet Arne Slot clearly isn't sure, as two Premier League starts - which came after the title was wrapped up - underline.
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Slot has even admitted that after Elliott returned in December from a broken foot, an issue which derailed his first half of the campaign, that he felt the ex-Fulham man wasn't up to the required standards.
"Harvey is one of the players that hasn't had as much playing time as he maybe deserves,' Slot said ahead of last month's trip to Chelsea.
'But like some others he's in competition with so many good players, so mainly I've chosen other players.
Elliott did eventually convince Slot of his value -Credit:Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images
'Also partly because he was injured for a long time. I've been honest with him: the first part after he came back from his injury, he wasn't the same as he was before his injury.'
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Yet strong cameos off the bench - including against Lille, Paris Saint-Germain, Southampton, and Fulham helped change Slot's mind.
'The last few months, he's back to his old level again,' the Liverpool head coach continued. 'There was no need for me to start with different players, but I think if you look at the amount of minutes he had in the last one or two months and the time before, you can see it goes up already.
"So that tells you we like, I like him more now than I did when he came back from his injury in the first months."
Elliott has enjoyed a superb summer for England -Credit:2025 UEFA
Whether Slot likes Elliott enough for the midfielder to have a serious role to play at Liverpool next season is uncertain. The Reds' No. 19 has admitted he may need to move on for the benefit of his career, and has been linked with moves to several clubs in recent weeks.
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Liverpool.com understands Brighton & Hove Albion holds strong interest in Elliott, while West Ham United, Aston Villa and RB Leipzig have been mentioned as possible moves.
Explaining earlier this season why Elliott has struggled to hold down a place in the team, Slot said: 'I always say to the players it's not only about you, it's also about the competition you are in.
'And in his situation he's in competition with five very good midfielders that you know and there are a few youngsters coming through that are very talented as well but they are not close to playing time yet.
But he's in competition with Wata, with Ryan, with Curtis, with Macca and himself, so these are the midfielders we have at the moment. He has to bring performances like he does and then playing time will probably increase.'