Harvey Elliott has been praised by his current boss at Valencia over the attitude he’s shown whilst on loan from Liverpool.
The 23-year-old didn’t get off to the most auspicious of starts in LaLiga, with Los Ches thumped 5-0 at home by Barcelona on his debut and club chiefs reportedly deeming him overweight when he arrived in Spain at the end of the summer.
The England under-21 international has yet to start for his current side, with all five appearances so far coming as a substitute, but the coaching change from Carlos Corberan to Javier Aguirre four weeks ago seems to be working in his favour.
Valencia boss ‘delighted’ with Elliott’s attitude
The recently appointed Valencia head coach has praised Elliott for the dedication he’s shown off the pitch, with the player enlisting a private nutritionist to improve his physical condition.
Aguirre said of the 2024/25 Premier League winner (via Super Deporte): “I see him more refined. He is working with a private nutritionist. I’m delighted with his attitude. He has a lot of quality and he’s a Valencia player. You have to get the best possible out of it.”
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Can Elliott carve out a regular starting berth at Valencia?
Having had his 2025/26 campaign written off by an abortive loan spell at Aston Villa and not done enough to convince Andoni Iraola in pre-season for Liverpool, perhaps it isn’t surprising that Elliott wasn’t in peak condition when he joined Valencia a few weeks ago.
The onus is still on him to ensure that he’s in good shape, and it’s to his credit that he’s working privately to make improvements in that regard and try to win a place in Aguirre’s starting XI at the Mestalla.
At 23, he’s no longer an up-and-coming prospect who can afford to bide his time. He already boasts more than 200 senior appearances and is at an age where he needs to nail down a long-term future with one club, rather than being loaned from pillar to post.
Having been cast aside by Arne Slot, Unai Emery and Iraola over the past year-and-a-bit, maybe Elliott just needs a head coach who has demonstrable faith in him and will give him the opportunity to perform to his full potential.
Hopefully Aguirre will see fit to bring him into his starting line-up at Valencia and keep him there. It’s the only way that Liverpool might get the best out of him further down the line, if they are to retain him at Anfield for another few years.