Fresh off being named Player of the Tournament for U21 Euro champions England, Harvey Elliott’s stock has arguably never been higher. A young, homegrown attack star. On paper, he seems precisely the sort of player Liverpool would be desperate to sign.
If he wasn’t on their books, that is. Instead, he is. And after appearing unable to convince manager Arne Slot of his talents in 2024-25, the 22-year-old is a near certainty to depart the club this summer and the club are believed to have now set an asking price.
At least that’s the story according to the typically reliable David Ornstein of The Athletic, who says the club have slapped a £40M price tag on Elliott—though he says the Reds would only consider going that low if the deal were to include a buyback clause.
In order for Liverpool to sanction a sale without a buyback, the minimum price would be £50M. For his part, Elliott is said to only want a move that would assure him playing time at a club playing in Europe, preferably one set to play in the Champions League.
That’s probably only possible if Elliott leaves England, given a move to the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, or Newcastle wouldn’t on its surface seem to make a great deal of sense. On the other hand, he was previously linked with Bayer Leverkusen.
When Liverpool signed Florian Wirtz from German’s number two finishers last season, Elliott was linked as a possibility to head in the other direction. Since, then, those links have faded as Leverkusen instead have pushed to sign Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah.
Frankfurt and Dortmund have also qualified in Germany, while in Spain there are Inter Milan, Atalanta, Juventus, and title holders Napoli. In Spain it’s Atletico Madrid and Villarreal (as well as Bilbao, limited to signing Basque players) joining Barca and Madrid.
None have yet been linked as Leverkusen were, but it might turn out to be a list of potential destinations to keep an eye on given Elliott’s priorities—and his hesitance to leave a Liverpool side looking to defend their league title and push for glory in Europe.