Harvey Elliott‘s transfer to Aston Villa has not unfolded in the manner neither he nor Liverpool would have expected, with the 22-year-old more on the fringe than he was at Anfield.
Elliott made no secret of the fact he wanted to take a step forward in his career and to do that meant leaving Anfield for more minutes, which has not come at Villa Park so far.
He signed on an initial loan deal on deadline day with a permanent transfer to be triggered once he hits 10 appearances. Unai Emery, however, has cast Elliott to the side.
With only two starts and no 90-minute appearances, we got some insight on Elliott from Villa fan, freelance broadcaster and host of All Villa No Filler podcast Frankie Maguire (@FrankieMaguire).
What was the reaction to Villa signing Harvey Elliott on deadline day?
Aston Villa had endured a difficult transfer window where UEFA spending restrictions meant the club couldn’t do much business.
Signing Harvey Elliott on deadline day felt like a shot in the arm.
Given his experience, quality and recent exploits with the England U21s over the summer, it was a player many of us were looking forward to seeing in a Villa shirt.
It has not gone well for him so far, not playing a minute since early October – why is that?
It is a mystery. Maybe Unai Emery would rather use the reported £30 million obligation money elsewhere in the squad given Villa are so strong in the central areas Elliott often operates in.
The unexpected rejuvenation of Emi Buendia may have had some influence on Emery’s thinking, too.
Frankly, the current situation doesn’t reflect brilliantly on Villa’s late transfer window dealings despite how challenging the summer was.
He arrived as a No. 10 option, with Liverpool having also used him out wide, but would Emery consider him in a different role – if so, what?
Elliott has played in the No. 10 role every time he has featured for Villa. He started one Premier League game against Fulham in the No. 10 position, but was withdrawn at half-time having struggled to make an impact.
The No. 10 role at Villa is specialised and the likes of Youri Tielemans, Morgan Rogers and previously Marco Asensio have all excelled at it.
The quality of the names mentioned shows how strong competition is for that role.
Elliott could feature out on the right for Villa where his main competition would be Evann Guessand, another new signing who has struggled to get going.
Is the treatment of Elliott raising questions about the club’s recruitment and Emery being on a different page when it comes to transfers?
Villa’s recruitment has been good in recent years given the club has operated under challenging SCR/PSR constraints to try and compete at the top.
Given his proven ability, the Elliott signing feels like it should work and it is a mystery why it hasn’t.
It has been reported Unai Emery wanted Lucas Paqueta from West Ham as a new No. 10, so maybe Elliott wasn’t his priority, while perhaps the former sporting director Monchi felt he had to get a body in on transfer deadline day. We might find out eventually.
Is there anything else you can tell us about Elliott’s current situation?
He appeared in the club’s recent Christmas advert and that’s as much as we’ve seen of him recently!
Is there a possibility he does not reach the 10 appearance mark to trigger his permanent transfer?
It is a very strong possibility he does not. He isn’t ever in the match day squad anymore, which speaks volumes.
Finally, given the demands of Emery’s system, what would Elliott need to change or do to earn a consistent place in the squad?
It is hard to answer without knowing what Emery really thinks about Elliott.
Personally, I’ve always felt Elliott is a big talent. My one observation when he played briefly for Villa was that he didn’t have loads of pace, although Tielemans and Buendia aren’t the quickest, either.
He seemed to struggle in the No. 10 role against Fulham and knowing exactly who he was supposed to link up with (though, of course, it will always take time to adapt).
If he can evolve quickly in that role, knowing when to move the ball faster and when to retain possession, he may have a future at Villa.