Harvey Elliott is spending the season on loan at Aston Villa from Liverpool with the possibility of the move being made permanent
Harvey Elliott, on loan at Aston Villa from Liverpool
Harvey Elliott, on loan at Aston Villa from Liverpool(Image: Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
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Liverpool's agreement with Aston Villa over Harvey Elliott has been clarified with the trigger for the number of appearances to make the player's loan move at the Midlands club permanent applying only to Premier League matches.
Elliott is on a season-long stay at Villa, who negotiated last summer a deal that would see them compelled to complete the £35million transfer should he play a certain number of games.
That has long been reported as being 10 matches, with Elliott currently having made eight outings for Villa this campaign.
However, the ECHO understands the clause applies only to Premier League games, with the 22-year-old having featured just four times for Villa in the competition this season.
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It means Elliott's appearances in Europe and the domestic cup competitions don't count towards the trigger total.
Nevertheless, Villa boss Unai Emery has chosen to regularly overlook Elliott, with the attacking midfielder having made only two outings in the Europa League, none in the FA Cup and one in the League Cup.
Emery hinted at the clause when asked about Elliott's situation on Friday ahead of their Premier League clash against Leeds United on Saturday afternoon.
“He is injured now," said the Villa boss. "He is not available because of injury.
“I was so clear one month ago. I think we must carry on, and of course help him as much as we can. Then, try to make him feel comfortable here.
“He is going to be available more or less to play in Europe. We are trying to focus on the Premier League, trying to focus on Europe.”