Liverpool ace plays in Premier League debut
It took just three minutes after Harvey Elliott’s first Premier League start for him to motivate Liverpool’s careful and patient approach to his development.
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The young winger turned the midfielder through the middle of Anfield and won a free kick for Liverpool in their comfortable home win over Burnley. Six minutes later, the teenager won another deal for the Reds, this time in a much more threatening position.
While nothing came of the two possibilities, there was an overwhelming feeling that Elliott’s choice was a kind of statement by Jurgen Klopp and the club.
Elliott’s first Premier League start has not materialized overnight. Instead, it was the realization of a year of hard transplantation and a process carried out by Klopp and his management team.
It all goes back to September 2020 when the teenager started against Lincoln City in the Carabao Cup. The Reds swept aside their Football League enemies that night, putting seven past them at LNER Stadium.
The boggy pitch disrupted the game, especially for technical players like Edda. The next step for Elliott was regular first team football and he was duly sent out to Blackburn Rovers for the rest of the 2020/21 campaign.
Under Tony Mowbray’s watchful eye, he played week in and week out in the championship and scored seven goals in 41 games – which impressed his manager with his attitude and commitment from minute one.
“You can not get him off the training ground,” Mowbray said of Elliott, speaking to The Athletic. “When he plays a game and comes to practice the next day, the guys who have not been involved can take part in a small game and Harvey just wants to join.
Harvey Elliott looked so comfortable during the first half of his first Liverpool start in the Premier League!
So much talent at just 18 years old! ? pic.twitter.com/pWQaV9q3uY
– 90min (@ 90min_Football) 21 August 2021
“He is always out on the grass; so much so that I have to keep sending him. It’s a great attitude he has. He helps us, helps our team and hopefully we help Liverpool develop a player and we help Harvey. Everyone wins as far as I can see. ”
Elliott returned to Liverpool in the summer of 2021 to join Klopp and the first team for preparations for the season. In the sweltering heat of Central Europe, he got to start in a number of friendly matches – which allowed him to come to terms with the team’s game pattern and be comfortable with the pace of Klopp’s aggressive philosophy.
His performances against Mainz, Hertha Berlin and Athletic Club were impressive, each time one step up in the class for Elliott. It is obvious that this experience, like his years in the championship, was enough to convince Klopp that he was ready to start in the Premier League.
Within ten minutes of the first start against Sean Dyche’s struggling Burnley, Elliott had the tone of what was to come. He joined Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah thereafter and looked calm on the biggest stage of his career. His selection was further confirmed with just over 20 minutes left, when Elliott pulled down a cruel shaving pass from Virgil van Dijk.
Jurgen Klopp offers instructions to Elliott / Catherine Ivill / Getty Images
His control was immediate, his consciousness excellent. Elliott fed the ball into the advanced Alexander-Arnold, who in turn hit the ball into Sadio Mane. The Senegalese international then tired of the goal and swept past Nick Pope to drop the game out of sight and finish three points for Liverpool.
But the moment was more significant than Liverpool putting the game out of reach. It was at that moment that Elliott confirmed that he is ready for regular action, something he is likely to see a lot of in the coming weeks and months.
Elliott was comfortable in the skin and assured those who previously clung to his hype that his first Premier League start was well worth the wait. His showing was also a rich reward for Liverpool, who may just have a future superstar on hand.