Harvey Elliott has been limited to just five appearances during his Aston Villa loan spell, with Stephen Warnock discussing the Liverpool midfielder's struggles and potential January return to Anfield
Harvey Elliott
Ex-Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock believes there's a chance Harvey Elliott could return to Anfield.
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Stephen Warnock believes Harvey Elliott possesses the quality to earn his place in Unai Emery's Aston Villa squad. Yet the former Villa and Liverpool defender suggested the 22-year-old's struggles might stem from his inability to nail down a specific role.
The England prospect endured another disappointing night after being overlooked for Villa's 2-1 victory against Young Boys in the Europa League. The result moved Emery's team closer to securing their spot in the Europa League knockout rounds, but Elliott remained an unused substitute against the Swiss outfit.
This latest snub adds to the mounting disappointment for the Liverpool loanee, who has managed just five outings across all competitions. Warnock understood the Premier League winner's difficulty in securing regular football under Emery.
However, the ex-defender acknowledged that lacking a defined position creates challenges for breaking into the first team, as Warnock explored the possibility of cutting short his loan spell in January.
"It depends what has gone on behind the scenes and I don't think a lot of people know," he said exclusively speaking to Birmingham Live via WhichBookie.
"Sometimes you go into a football club and the football manager doesn't think you fit into his plans or there's a side that can be improved. Can you work hard behind the scenes?
"When he moved to Aston Villa, everyone thought it would be a dream move but my thing with Harvey has always been that he's a brilliant footballer and he's so naturally gifted but what is his best position?"
"I couldn't tell you because certain games suit certain positions for him and it's been sort of his downfall. I've seen people saying bring him back to Liverpool and he'll play a major part but if he can't get in the Villa team, why would he suddenly get into Liverpool's?"
Harvey Elliott
Harvey Elliott faces an uncertain future at Aston Villa and former defender Stephen Warnock has offered his thoughts
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Regarding the prospect of returning to Anfield in the New Year, Warnock continued: "Sometimes moves work out for players, sometimes they don't, what we know about Harvey is he will get his head down and get on with, if come January, he's still not playing football and if there's a way out of the loan, I'm sure he'll look to get at that because he'll think he'll want to play football because that's why he left Liverpool, to play more games."
From his five outings across all competitions, Elliott has secured merely three Premier League appearances, one European fixture and another in the Carabao Cup which delivered his sole strike for Villa.
It recently came to light that should he reach ten appearances for Villa, the club must complete his permanent signing for the £35 million fee agreed during the summer.
The future of the two-time under-21 European Championships winner at Villa Park remains uncertain, with doubts over whether his move from Liverpool to the Midlands will be made permanent.
When questioned about Elliott, Emery stated: "We now have a lot of matches. We must focus on each match with the players we have now.
"We are not thinking about the transfer window in January. He is one of our players and hopefully he can help us. Then, we are going to decide.
"Firstly, there are other players performing very well. This is the first argument of why he is not playing. He is training very well every day."
Harvey Elliott applauds Aston Villa fans following a Europa League fixture
Harvey Elliott has been struggling for game time with Aston Villa on loan from Liverpool
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Despite the initial disappointment, Warnock anticipates that the playmaker will be working hard to fit into the Spaniard's plans, as he speculated on what might be happening behind closed doors at Villa.
Warnock commented: "Having known him and known him off the pitch, he's probably doing everything he can behind the scenes to get into the team and that's all you can do. Ask questions of the staff, the manager and I'm sure he's done that.
"The hardest part is not trying too hard, which sounds daft, because the harder you try, the harder it becomes because you're not playing with a freedom, you're trying to impress too much without playing your natural game. It's got to be a natural evolution if you like and it has to be organic but it's very difficult because you're desperate to impress and do well.
"There will be an element of, 'Have I made the wrong decision here? Can I ever turn this manager's opinion around?' He's good enough to do it, maybe it will take a little bit more time, I hope he does and I'm sure he will."