Harvey Elliott has declared that the future of Liverpool is in safe hands thanks to the young players in the squad.
In an interview with The Times today, Elliott spoke about the potential of some of the less experienced members of Jurgen Klopp’s group.
“Without sounding big-headed we feel the future is a big part of the team. If you look at the likes of Fábio Carvalho, Ibrahima Konate, people forget Trent [Alexander-Arnold’s] age, Darwin [Nunez], Joe Gomez… these are young, up-and-coming players,” said the 19-year-old.
“I think it is bringing something else to the game across football. That energy and hunger to want to go out and impress.
“You see so many young players coming through now at all clubs. Phil Foden is an unbelievable talent starting in this City team. And at Liverpool, the pathway is there. You can see it with the gaffer and the way he is with the younger guys, how he wants to bed them into the team. There is no better person to play under than Jurgen.”
Liverpool looking to youth a little too much?
It’s a decent point made by Elliott. Despite a general feeling that Liverpool’s squad is becoming a little aged, there are clear examples to refute this.
Using Gomez as one of these examples may be a bit of a stretch. But other than that, Liverpool do have a potential spine of young talent.
Whether or not any of those players have the ability to live up to the likes of Virgil Van Dijk, Fabinho and Mohamed Salah is up for debate, though.
At the moment it feels as though a little too much is being asked of some of these players. Fabio Carvalho has perhaps been rushed into the spotlight too fast, while Elliott himself is pretty much playing every game.
A big burden is being placed on the young shoulders of 23-year-old Darwin Nunez, too. However, when you see the kind of standards being set by 22-year-old Erling Haaland at Manchester City, that point becomes a little moot.
Instead, it could well be that these youngsters aren’t quite up to the task of being long-term Liverpool regulars. There’s no shame in that, and players with far less ability have gone on to have good careers with the Reds.
But at this moment in time, Liverpool need to think very carefully about which direction they’re heading in.
Legends like Van Dijk, Salah and Jordan Henderson will soon start to head deep into their thirties. The recruitment team need to bridge the gap between the youngsters and the veterans. And pretty sharpish, too.
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