Harvey Elliott has not had the year he and Liverpool were expecting when he moved to Aston Villa last summer, with Unai Emery quickly freezing him out in the Midlands
14:18, 07 May 2026
Harvey Elliott before the Europa League game between Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa.
Harvey Elliott before the Europa League game between Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa.(Image: Nigel French/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
Harvey Elliott could be forgiven for returning to Liverpool this summer with a feeling of frustration. Quite simply, his loan spell at Aston Villa hasn't gone how any party could have reasonably imagined.
On paper, it looked like Elliott was getting a move to an upwardly mobile club where he could continue his career and get more game time than he had under Arne Slot at Anfield. That has only partially been true: Aston Villa has done well; he has barely featured.
The feeling that Elliott would become an Aston Villa player permanently in the summer of 2026 was unanimous, with Unai Emery's men unable to do the deal a year earlier because of PSR restrictions.
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Instead, what transpired was that the number of games required to trigger the agreed $47 million (£35 million) transaction was never to be reached, because Emery made it clear early on that he didn't want that.
The Aston Villa boss said that he had made up his mind just a few weeks in: he didn't want to sign Elliott permanently and didn't want to spend the sort of money that had been agreed.
What Emery did want was the deal to be renegotiated mid-season to take out the buying clause and mean that Elliott could play as often as the Spaniard liked without ever needing to part with a fee.
Harvey Elliott of Aston Villa
Harvey Elliott will have a point to prove after his Aston Villa loan spell(Image: Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)
However, the former Liverpool CEO Christian Purslow reasoned that the Reds couldn't agree to that.
They would then risk missing out on playing in the Champions League this season because of Elliott's contributions for a rival for the top five places in the form of Aston Villa.
Having come off the bench for Liverpool, he couldn't leave in January and join another team in Europe because he had already reached the limit of having represented two sides in the same season.
And, as a result, a stalemate. Elliott has been restricted to just four appearances in the Premier League since leaving Liverpool, and he will come back to Anfield in the summer, back at square one.
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According to The Athletic, RB Leipzig is one option that could return to the table for Elliott. And a move to Germany could make plenty of sense.
Last summer, when it sold Xavi Simons to Tottenham, Leipzig did hold an interest in Elliott, though that didn't end up going anywhere in the end.
That is why the move to Aston Villa ended up happening, though the Bundesliga side could return at the right price. It has a track record of developing talents like Elliott and would provide a stable platform for him in a league that should suit his skillset.
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At the age of 23, Elliott needs to make sure his next transfer is the right one. Joining a Leipzig team on the up again and heading back into the Champions League feels like a sensible pick.