Newcastle boss Eddie Howe and Liverpool head coach Arne Slot. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)placeholder image
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe and Liverpool head coach Arne Slot. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images) | AFP via Getty Images
Newcastle United are reportedly keen on signing Liverpool attacking midfielder Harvey Elliott.
It’s a departure that many may feel is inevitable.
In truth, it’s difficult to see another outcome. While Arne Slot would undoubtedly be happy to keep Harvey Elliott at Liverpool, the feeling might not be entirely mutual.
Of course, if Elliott was guaranteed to be a regular starter then there’s scant chance he would be mulling over an exit from his boyhood club. But the opportunities he will get in the 2025-26 season look scarce. He was a bit-part player as Liverpool comfortably won the Premier League title. Now that Florian Wirtz has been signed for a club-record £100 million and plays in the same position as Elliott, the prospect of more minutes has further diminished.
Elliott will be pragmatic about his situation. He’ll know that Wirtz is arriving to be at the fulcrum of Slot’s plans in Liverpool’s title defence. With Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones favoured last term, it will be even more of a challenge to receive the game time Elliott covets.
Elliott in demand
The 22-year-old will also be wary that he won’t be short of options. So will Liverpool. In fact, they might expect even more suitors after Elliott was named the Player of the Tournament when helping England win the Under-21 European Championships. Elliott might have his pick of clubs to choose from should they all meet Liverpool’s price tag.
He will want to play for a team competing in the upper echelons and ideally the Champions League. It’s why a switch to Newcastle United is likely to appeal if they are indeed keen. The Magpies have qualified for Europe’s elite club competition and are on an upward trajectory under Eddie Howe. They ended their 70-year hoodoo of not winning a trophy when beating the Reds in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley and that has only increased the appetite for trophies.
Gordon revival
So perhaps maybe Liverpool could look to see where Newcastle stand on Anthony Gordon’s future. It was just more than a year ago when the Magpies were open to parting ways with the Scouser, who grew up as a Kopite despite graduating through Everton’s academy.
The possibility of Gordon moving to Merseyside and either Joe Gomez or Jarell Qunsah heading into the opposite direction was mooted as Newcastle scrambled for cash to meet Premier League profit and sustainability rules.
Yet it’s fair to say that Gordon did not have the same impact last term as he did in 2023-24. In his first full season at St James’ Park, Gordon registered 12 goals and 16 assists in 48 appearances. But in 2024-25, those figures dropped as he scored nine times and created seven. Towards the end, Harvey Barnes was favoured.
Eddie Howe has stated that he does not want to lose any of his best players. But if he got the inkling that Gordon would be open to a potential switch to Anfield then it might change things. He would not want an unhappy player in the dressing room.
Granted, Gordon’s valuation will be worth more than Elliott’s but it would not be a chasm. Liverpool were prepared to pay around £30 million had either Gomez or Quansah moved to Tyneside last summer. That stance may not have changed. What’s more, both outfits would not be impacted in terms of meeting the homegrown rule in the Premier League and UEFA’s locally-trained rule in the Champions League.
It would be fanciful that Newcastle would be willing to allow Gordon to depart. He is still regarded as one of their chief threats and among their best-paid players. However, perhaps it is an idea that Liverpool could at least suggest, even if it was scotched by the Magpies.
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