After six years of living a childhood dream shared by his father, Harvey Elliott has left Liverpool for Aston Villa on a loan deal with an obligation to be made permanent next summer.
Elliott officially joined Liverpool from Fulham as a prodigious 16-year-old, but his roots to the club run far deeper. Born into a family that feverishly supports the Reds, Elliott rejected a move to Real Madrid to head to Anfield.
“I was close to going to Madrid and then I think Liverpool came in,” Elliott would later explained. “And as soon as I heard they had come in, that was it. My heart was set on it, just because of being a Liverpool fan, all the family. It was my dad’s dream to play for Liverpool himself, but he didn’t quite make it in that way.”
Elliott’s father took his eldest son to his first game at Anfield as a three year old. A mere 13 years later, he was starting in front of the Kop in a 5–5 thriller against Arsenal.
The boyhood fan would amass 149 senior appearances for the club of his dreams before belatedly accepted that he need to move on to further his own development. Aston Villa are the grateful beneficiaries, quickly striking up a loan agreement with the obligation to be made permanent for a total package of around £35 million ($47.3 million). The deal is conditional on a set number of appearances at his new club.
Jürgen Klopp often had a place in his team for Elliott when he was fit but minutes have been harder to come by under Arne Slot. During Liverpool’s title-winning 2024–25 campaign, the 22-year-old was afforded just two Premier League starts, both of which came after the Reds had already been mathematically confirmed as champions at the end of April.
Over the summer, Elliott repeatedly outlined the internal strife he was suffering through, weighing up his desire for more game time and reluctance to leave Liverpool. “I don’t really want to be wasting years on my career because it’s a short career,” he lamented.
In a twist of fate which would have seemed inconceivable to that excited teenager who signed for Liverpool six years ago, he has now chosen to leave.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Harvey Elliott Ends Liverpool Dream With Premier League Switch, Permanent Terms Detailed.
