Harvey Elliott isn’t just playing for a trophy — he’s playing for his future.
The 22-year-old Liverpool midfielder delivered a stunning performance for England U21s, netting both goals in their 2-1 semi-final victory over the Netherlands to book a place in the U21 EURO final against Germany on Saturday.
But more than that, his message was clear: he’s ready for the next big step.
Elliott, one of only two remaining players from Lee Carsley’s victorious 2023 squad, has been a consistent presence in this year’s campaign.
With four goals so far, he sits just behind Germany’s Nick Woltemade in the tournament’s scoring charts. Still, it’s not just about numbers—it’s about maturity, leadership, and proving a point.
“It’s a different situation because coming from Liverpool, there’s a lot of leaders in that team,” Elliott reflected.
“I think now it’s using my learning, using what I’ve seen the leaders at Liverpool do and how they construct the team. When times are tough, how they bring themselves back up and the team back up.”
Also Read: Another Italian club interested in Liverpool winger
Elliott watched, waited—and then took over
That mental strength has shown on the pitch. Elliott’s goals weren’t just technically impressive—they were timely, dragging England across the line when the pressure was on. His willingness to lead, both on and off the pitch, has caught attention.
“There’s so many emotions throughout the game, highs, lows, where we feel tired. I think just using what I’ve learned and being around to try and keep the guys going, keep the team going ,” he added.
“Even if I’m on the bench, I try my hardest to keep positive, keep the team going.”
Elliott credits his evolution to lessons learned from Liverpool’s senior stars—specifically Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.
“I think them guys in particular, if you look at so many moments throughout the season, where the likes of Mohamed Salah, for example, has had to score us goals, important goals, winning goals,” Elliott said.
“Towards the end of the season, Van Dijk came up and scored a header in the 90th minute.
I think just small things like that, the leadership, to not give up, to keep going to the final whistle and take these opportunities, I think that’s just leadership within itself.
You can speak as much as you want on the pitch, you can say whatever, but at the end of the day, when the moment comes and you need to show up and you need to, for example, in my situation, score a goal, it’s about how you take that.
Those opportunities are where it’s vital.”
Also Read: Liverpool keep doors open for defender’s return with buy-back clause
This was big—but he’s thinking bigger
With his star rising again on the international stage, Elliott is aware of what it takes to deliver in high-stakes football.
“It’s a situation where I kind of know what it takes to be in the end stage of these tournaments,” he said.
“I’ve experienced it before and I’ve seen players do it before where they’ve had to step up, especially when times are tough and our backs are kind of against the wall.
It’s just about how you dig deep, how do you keep going and fight to the very end.
To be able to contribute two goals and win the game, I’m proper made up, but it’s one of them where we have a final to think about now. We can’t get too carried away and we need to recover, rest and go again.”
Saturday’s final against Germany promises to be a thriller. But for Harvey Elliott, the final might be just the beginning.
Also Read: Darwin Nunez set for Liverpool exit after Napoli ‘deal agreed’