Harvey Elliott‘s early return for Liverpool pre-season has already made a mark on Andoni Iraola, who is prepared to give him a chance to earn a long-term future.
Elliott was among the first senior players back at the AXA Training Centre after the post-season break, looking to put a miserable campaign behind him.
The terms of his loan move to Aston Villa meant Unai Emery barely used him, and having only played 11 times in the entirety of 2025/26, he has looked to make up for lost time.
Iraola is aware of the situation and is already impressed with the 23-year-old’s attitude, with Elliott “eager to be a Liverpool player.”
“Harvey is here with us. He has come [in early] also,” Iraola told reporters in his first press conference on Monday.
“I’ve seen him with this eagerness to show himself, to get himself ready again. He will have a chance during the pre-season; we will need him.
“It’s a good sign that he came a week earlier, he’s been training with the under-21s, and I hope we can see him in a good place.
“I think Harvey, last season had to be very difficult for him, because it was a strange situation where basically they couldn’t even put him in to play.
“I think he uses what he has experienced, the bad situation, to make him even more eager to be a Liverpool player, yes.”
Andoni Iraola has watched Liverpool U21s closely
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Monday, August 4, 2025: Liverpool's Harvey Elliott celebrates after scoring his side's fourth goal during a pre-season friendly match between Liverpool FC and Athletic Bilbao at Anfield. Liverpool won 4-1. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Elliott was joined in preparatory work last week by Jeremy Jacquet, Stefan Bajcetic and James McConnell, who all – for various reasons – missed large chunks of the previous season.
They joined the Liverpool U21s squad for sessions watched by Iraola and his first-team staff, with the Spaniard relishing the opportunity to assess his wider pool of players.
“I’m looking at the positives almost, I’ve now had one week to see the training from the under-21s,” he explained.
KIRKBY, ENGLAND - Thursday, May 14, 2026: Liverpool's head coach Andoni Iraola poses for an official photocall ahead of his first press conference at the AXA Training Centre. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
“We’ve had some of the players from the first team willing to come a little bit before [they were due], so they are already in a better shape to start.
“Already today, they didn’t have to come, but I’ve seen two or three who I haven’t seen before. They are already here, ready for the testing tomorrow.
“So I think this progressive introduction will also allow me to maybe get more in touch with every player.
“And it will also give – especially the young players, some players who have been on loan – more minutes during pre-season.
“The first part of pre-season basically is going to be with a lot of players from the academy, players that in other situations maybe I wouldn’t know as well.
“Now I will have the chance to get to know them personally, training every day with them, in some friendlies. It’s going to be good information for me.”