Image Credits: Imago Images
When Harvey Elliott sealed his deadline-day loan move to Aston Villa back in September, it looked like the perfect next step for the starlet. A club competing for Champions League football, a manager with a track record of developing players, and a £35 million obligation to buy that would cement his future at a top-six side.
Fast forward four months, and the 22-year-old finds himself trapped in one of the most bizarre transfer sagas of the season. Elliott has been effectively frozen out at Villa Park since early October, stuck on just five total appearances—four in the Premier League with only one start—as Unai Emery deliberately avoids triggering the permanent transfer clause. The crux of the issue? Villa’s obligation to buy kicks in once Elliott reaches 10 Premier League appearances, a threshold the club decided two months ago they have no intention of reaching.
The situation leaves Elliott in an unprecedented limbo. Having already represented both Liverpool and Villa this season, FIFA regulations prevent him from playing for a third European club until next season. His only escape route appears to be a move to a league with an overlapping calendar, such as Major League Soccer – though a move there has largely been quashed by reliable reports.
But Arne Slot seems to have already sold Elliott in his mind at least with his latest quotes judging from his pre-Arsenal press conference. When quizzed on the 22-year-old, he offered a blunt response:
“If you want to ask about a [Aston] Villa player, ask Unai Emery. Liverpool has no recall option,” said the Dutchman.
It does seem like Elliott is being hung out to dry by both clubs, and hopefully his situation does get sorted in this January window.
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