Harvey Elliott‘s lack of starts for Liverpool has attracted interest from Dortmund and Brighton, with Arne Slot explaining his struggle in utilising the youngster.
Elliott has started just once this season, and while a second is likely against League Two side Accrington Stanley on Saturday in the FA Cup, the reality is that he is far from a regular.
Though the 21-year-old’s exposure has increased in recent weeks with cameos off the bench, it is clear that Slot does not yet consider him a starting option in the Premier League or Champions League.
According to Sky Sports, that has led a number of clubs to consider an approach to sign Elliott, including both Dortmund and Brighton.
But the head coach insists this is due to a difficulty in bringing him back into the fold in high-stakes situations – which almost every game is.
“I agree with you he’s a talented player. He’s been this for us for so long,” he told reporters on Friday when asked about Elliott’s involvement.
“In recent weeks he comes in quite a lot and gets his minutes over there, but like it is for him, like it is for all the others, they are in competition with many other good players as well.
“He was very unlucky that after two games he got injured, was out for a long time.
“And from what I’ve seen until now, with almost all of our players that have been out for quite a while, in this league, in this tempo, in this intensity, and the quality we have, the other teams have as well, it is not so easy to come back and be at your best immediately.
“I see this not only with Harvey, I see this with almost all the other players that have been out for five, six, seven or eight weeks.
“That is the balance we have to find, by giving them playing time to get back to their best level but still be able to win every game.
“Like I just said, our margins are constantly small. If you’re 5-0 up you can give players that have been out for quite a long time half an hour or a half or even longer.
“But that is not the way we win, or won, our games until now. That’s also the reason why, if one or two times we were a bit unlucky, that we can draw a game or lose a game.”
Elliott is expected to be one of many fringe players to come into the side for Saturday’s 12.15pm kickoff at Anfield, with the young midfielder hopeful that can lead to more trust from Slot going forward.
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