Liverpool Football Club went through a midfield revolution last summer, following the departures of club captain Jordan Henderson, and stalwart James Milner. Former captain Henderson left to join Saudi side Al Ettifaq, although he has since signed for Ajax, with Milner signing for Premier League rivals Brighton on a free transfer.
Fabinho, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all departed the club, with Fabinho joining Al Ittihad and the latter two leaving on free transfers.
This midfield firesale meant the Reds had to sign several new players in the centre of the park to replace those that left. Alexis Mac Allister was brought in from Brighton for just £35m, Dominik Szoboszlai joined the club from RB Leipzig for £60m, Ryan Gravenberch signed from Bayern Munich for £34.3m, and Wataru Endo was brought in from Stuttgart for a rumoured £16m.
Of course, they still had midfielders at the club, although Stefan Bajcetic and Thaigo have been injured for much of the season.
The likes of Curtis Jones have stepped up to become a key player at Anfield, so much so that many people want him in England’s ideal Euro 2024 squad. However, there is another young English midfielder who is thriving this season for the Reds, and in many people’s opinion, deserves a regular starting spot.
Liverpool's midfield prodigy
Harvey Elliott has made quite the impact for Liverpool this season. The 21-year-old has scored three goals and has seven assists in 44 games, which included three assists in a game against Sparta Prague in the Europa League.
He was the first Englishman to achieve that feat in a major European competition since James Milner in 2017, against Spartak Moscow in the Champions League, as per Opta Joe.
Elliott is a man full of confidence, and with Liverpool’s ongoing title battle about to hit its climax, the former Fulham man explained in a recent interview, that he believes his side can go on and win the title, saying “We have the team to do it, so who says we can’t?”.
Liverpool’s draw with Manchester United last Sunday meant they failed to go top of the table, but are level on points with Arsenal and second only on goal difference.
Indeed, Elliott has his sights set on an England call-up, with Euro 2024 right around the corner. The midfielder was a Euro U21 winner with the Three Lions last summer, and his form at that level has been nothing short of stupendous. The 21-year-old has played ten games in qualifiers for the next U21 Euros so far, bagging seven goals and assisting six.
He is a wonderful talent and has been described by former Leeds striker Noel Whelan as “the perfect replacement” for ex-Red Gini Wijnaldum, in an interview with Football Insider. His performances for club and country this season have shown why.
Elliott is keeping his feet grounded, although he has acknowledged his chance of a call-up recently, saying "If I put in the performances at Liverpool then you never know what will come around the corner”.
Why Harvey Elliott now has to start
It has not just been for England U21s that Elliott has thrived this season. He has been a standout player for Liverpool, although regular starts have been hard to come by; the youngster has started just six games in the Premier League but has made 27 appearances.
Against Manchester United, in just 21 minutes, Liverpool’s number 19 came off the bench and changed the game, winning the penalty which Mohamed Salah equalised from, meanwhile completing 85% of his passes and having 32 touches, as per Sofascore.
It was a busy game for the young midfielder, who is not afraid of getting on the ball and making things happen. According to Fbref, Elliott averages 2.18 key passes per 90 minutes, ranking him in the top 5% amongst midfielders in Europe, and 2.88 passes into the penalty area per 90 minutes, which places him in the top 1% amongst midfielders.
He is an elite creator and averages 4.47 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes, and 0.64 goal-creating actions per 90 minutes. This places him in the best 3% and 2% amongst midfielders respectively. Impressive stuff indeed.
Whilst he can also operate on the right-hand side, Elliott’s career path may well lead him to play in the centre of midfield. He has played there most often for Liverpool this season, and he can get on the ball between the lines and make things happen from a central area.
Described by The Atheltic’s Liverpool correspondent James Pearce as a “special talent”, Elliott no doubt has a big future ahead of him.
The 21-year-old will be looking to help drive Liverpool to the league and Europa League title. It could well be the case Klopp unleashes the youngster against Atalanta on Thursday, and for the rest of the season, because Elliott could well play a key role in helping his side win a treble this season.
