Fulham boss Marco Silvaplaceholder image
Fulham boss Marco Silva | Getty Images
Fulham need to boost their squad in January as Marco Silva's side look to rise away from the Premier League drop zone
Fulham are too close to the Premier League drop zone for comfort at the moment and they will be nervously looking over their shoulder. They find themselves in 15th position in the table after 15 fixtures and haven’t been able to string a set of wins together. The London outfit are only four points above the drop zone after five wins so far and won’t be feeling very comfortable.
Marco Silva’s side lost 2-1 at home to Crystal Palace last time out at Craven Cottage and conceded late on against the Eagles. They will be looking to bounce back with a positive result against Scott Parker’s Burnley away at Turf Moor this weekend. Their upcoming opponents are in the bottom three along with Wolves and West Ham following their promotion from the Championship.
Fulham should move to re-sign Harvey Elliott from Liverpool
Harvey Elliott’s loan switch to Aston Villa in the last transfer window hasn’t gone to plan. Liverpool let him move to Villa Park on a temporary basis earlier this year. However, he has struggled to make an impact in the Midlands and now appears set to depart in January. Unai Emery has said: “I respect him as a player and as a person. He is training well, but we have one circumstance with him. Hopefully we can get a solution for him to try to play consistently and try to continue in his career with us or not."
He is poised for a return to Anfield this winter. He is unlikely to break into Arne Slot’s starting XI due to competition for places from top quality individuals like Cody Gakpo, Mohamed Salah and Florian Wirtz. Another exit is on the cards and his parent club have a big decision to make on where to send him next as they weigh up their options.
Fulham should try and lure Elliott back down to London to boost their attacking department as they look to climb up the division. He joined the Whites’ academy at U18s level after a spell with rivals QPR and he went on to play three times for their first-team as a promising youngster. The England youth international then left for Liverpool back in 2019.
He is highly thought of by the Reds but was allowed to leave them to get more minutes. Things just haven’t worked out for him at Aston Villa though and a change of scene would do him good. At the time of his departure, Slot said: “I think he is completely ready now to show the quality he has at Aston Villa."
Why Harvey Elliott would suit Fulham?
Elliott would inject more quality into Fulham’s options at the top end of the pitch. He would be guaranteed regular action with the Whites which is what he needs at this stage of the career to boost his development. In addition, he would feel comfortable playing somewhere he already knows so it wouldn’t take him long to adapt to the new surroundings.
Silva has managed to get the best out of similar players like Alex Iwobi and Emile Smith-Rowe so there is no reason why he couldn’t do the same with Elliott. He needs to get his confidence back and that will only happen by getting consistent opportunities. Aston Villa haven’t been able to give him that and he will feel he has a point to prove at the top level.
Fulham sold Elliott to Liverpool six years ago and he has since made 149 appearances for the Reds altogether, scoring 15 goals. They have won the league title and Carabao Cup since his switch to Merseyside. As well as Villa, he has also been shipped out on loan in the past to Blackburn Rovers.
If he went back to his former team, it would be a good story and a chance for him to prove himself once again. As Slot alluded to, he has ‘quality’ and it is about time a head coach like Silva unlocked it. The Whites will see this Saturday’s clash against strugglers Burnley as one they need to win.
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