View: 99% Harvey Elliott can be Arne Slot’s surprise weapon amid ‘selfish’ Liverpool admission
Liverpool midfielder Harvey Elliott has said he needs to be more “selfish” next season to force himself into Arne Slot’s plans.
The 21-year-old has established himself as a first-team regular at Anfield following his move from Fulham in 2019.
He enjoyed his most productive season in a Liverpool shirt last term with three goals and six assists in the Premier League and recognised he needs to improve his output to stake a claim in Slot’s side this season.
“I am at an age now where I want to cement my place in the team and I want to be playing week in and week out – and as I said it is not going to just come for me,” he said to the Daily Mail (30 July).
“It’s just to make it more about myself and be a bit more selfish in certain ways but I have that team spirit in me, I will never lose that. I want to play for the team and the badge, I love the club and that is never going to leave me. But in certain situations, I need to think about myself more.”
Harvey Elliott can have an important season for Liverpool
Elliott has become somewhat of an enigma during his time at Anfield. He came through the academy at Fulham as a right-winger but has plied his trade in central midfield for Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp had a knack for converting wingers as central midfielders and did so with Xherdan Shaqiri and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who both showed their quality in midfield during their time at the Reds.
Liverpool are well-stocked in midfield with Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Curtis Jones capable of playing as offensive midfielders.
And with the Reds needing a long-term succession plan for Mohammed Salah, they need to make a decision where best to utilise Elliott in the side.
The 21-year-old has played 79 times in midfield and 32 times on the right wing at Anfield (Transfermarkt), and his versatility will be an asset for Slot as the Dutchman likes to give his players the freedom of the pitch.
Elliott tends to move toward the wings when the Reds attack and was in the top 88.4 percentile for successful crosses in the league last season, with a 35.5 per cent accuracy, and in the top 86 percentile for midfielders. (Fotmob)
He proved to be a creative maestro in the Liverpool midfield and underwent a breakout season in terms of his productivity on the pitch.
Elliott averaged 0.43 assists per match, placing him in the top 99 percentile, and his 2.92 shots per match were in the top 99 percentile. He was also was in the top 96 percentile for shot-creating actions, with 4.72 per match (FBref).
Slot can mould him to become a perfect midfielder in a system that focuses heavily on the centre-midfielders. Indeed, he was in the top 91 percentile for progressive passes and 96 percentile for progressive carries last term.
In an attacking sense, Elliott is doing all the right things to work towards his goal of improving his attacking output for the Reds, but at 5 feet 5 inches, is lacking a physical presence on the pitch and will need to work hard towards improving his physicality to cope with the demands of the Premier League.
As per Sofascore, he won only 50 per cent of his duels contested last term and finished the season in the bottom 47.3 percentile for tackles won, 27.9 percentile for interceptions, 48.8 percentile for ball recoveries, and 35.7 percentile for players dribbled past with 21 occasions. (Fotmob)
Elliott has all the tools to develop into a world-class performer at Anfield. Whether that be on the wing or in midfield, it will be interesting to see where Slot best sees him in his side this season, but it is clear he is ready to kick-on and make a real impact for the Reds this year.
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