Paul Merson says ‘excellent’ Liverpool player isn’t good enough to start & could be sold
Paul Merson has advised Liverpool to consider offloading Harvey Elliott this summer.
The young Englishman has struggled for minutes in 2024/25 under new head coach Arne Slot. He’s racked up 25 appearances (in all competitions) and 720 minutes.
That’s in sharp contrast to Jurgen Klopp’s final campaign at the Anfield helm, where Elliott picked up 2,786 minutes amongst 53 appearances.
Harvey Elliott could be sold
Merson justified his claim by comparing the Liverpool midfielder’s effectiveness off the bench compared to starting a game.
That’s perhaps a little harsh of an assessment, however, considering the footballer has only started five times this season.
“I expect some changes to happen at Liverpool this summer,” the Sky Sports pundit told Sportskeeda.
“I look at someone like Harvey Elliott, who is excellent when he comes off the bench. But if he has to start a game, he rarely has the same impact.
“Liverpool could look to move on some players like that if they want to leave. I would keep them as squad players because we’ve seen Arsenal struggling without enough options this season. But it also depends on whether these players want to continue in limited roles.”
When does Elliott’s contract run out?
Harvey Elliott is contracted to Liverpool until the summer of 2027. He signed his extension in 2022.
A Liverpool exit is possible
It’s a potentially difficult conversation for the club to have, and potentially an unnecessary one given that the player himself is keen to stay put.
That said, there has been some fresh signs since that Elliott would be prepared to consider an early exit in light of limited game time.
“I hope that I can push on. This is my team, I am committed to them and it’s just a situation that is always going to have a lot of talk,” the midfielder told the Liverpool Echo.
“I just need to think about what is best for my future, my career and as much as I want it to be here, you never know what is going to happen around the corner.
“If I had it my way, that would be here. I would play each and every game here and stay here for the rest of my career but it all depends on managers, the people above.”
Presuming that the 22-year-old doesn’t get the answer he’s looking for ahead of the next campaign, there’s a very real chance he could, reluctantly, call time on a six-year career at Liverpool.
Who could sign Elliott?
We’ve reported on alleged interest from Wolves, where our No.19 would surely have a better guarantee of regular minutes.
Newcastle, also, if reports are to be believed, are seriously interested in signing Harvey Elliott this summer.
Ultimately, however, it remains to be seen if an interested party is prepared to commit to meet Liverpool’s generous asking price of £50m.
It’s a figure we’re perfectly entitled to seek, given the player’s homegrown status and undeniable quality.
Though, for the record, we’re in absolutely no rush to see such a young talent depart.
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