Jurgen Klopp lauded Harvey Elliott when prompted in his pre-Brentford press conference.
The former Mainz head coach labelled the 20-year-old ‘incredibly important’, to such an extent that many at Liverpool ‘forget how young he is’.
“We always forget how young he is. Before his bad injury, he was one of the first on the teamsheet,” the 56-year-old was quoted as saying by BBC Sport.
“Young players go through different moments in the early stage of their career [and] it’s completely normal.
“Harvey is incredibly important and I’m sure he knows that. Probably he wants to start every game but he has time, he is young and he will be there 100%.”
The former Fulham Academy graduate has been of critical importance to the Reds this term, registering four goal contributions this term (all from the bench).
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The power of the Liverpool bench
How often our young midfielder has been introduced in games – only two in 20 league appearances have been starts – says a great deal.
That’s not to dismiss Elliott’s value to this Liverpool side. Again, to emphasise the manager’s words, he’s extremely young.
Whoever walks in through the doors of the AXA training centre after Klopp’s exit will be inheriting a player with vast potential.
It’s a shame it won’t be our affable German tactician making the most of it! Though, we’ve no doubt the priority will be to bring in a manager committed to developing young talent.
In the meantime, let’s make sure Harvey isn’t an unsung hero of the 2023/24 campaign!