BRING HIM HOME: FANS DEMAND ARNE SLOT RECALLS STRUGGLING HARVEY ELLIOTT
Harvey Elliott is overlooked at Aston Villa, sparking fan calls for Arne Slot to recall him. Due to FIFA rules, returning to Liverpool is his only escape from the bench.
It looks like Arne Slot may face calls to bring Harvey Elliott back to Liverpool. The midfielder is struggling for game time at Aston Villa.
The England U21 player has only played in five games for Villa, starting in only two. To make it worse, Unai Emery hasn't put him in the Premier League squad since the Tottenham game in October.
Elliott was left out again during Villa's 2-1 victory over Arsenal. Jadon Sancho was chosen for the squad instead, even though he hasn't played well recently. After a late goal, Villa is now second in the league.
Emery said that Emiliano Buendia's good performance, which has helped his Villa career recently, is one reason why Elliott hasn't been playing much.
Liverpool fans have been using social media to ask Slot to bring Elliott back to Anfield. One X user said, Another Villa game without Harvey Elliott. Bring him home!
Another user said, I'd rather he were on our bench than theirs. He deserves better.
Someone else said, "It's ridiculous that Harvey Elliott can't even make the bench for Aston Villa." I like and respect Unai Emery, but better managers than him have found plenty of work for Harvey.
Reports say that Villa's choice to sign Elliott was mainly because of Monchi, the club's former president of football operations. Monchi left less than a month after Elliott came to the team, which may be due to disagreements with Emery about transfer targets.
Elliott is in a tough spot now. FIFA rules say a player can't play for more than two clubs in one season. Since he has already played for Liverpool and Villa, his only options are to either break into Villa’s first team or go back to Liverpool under Slot. Right now, both seem unlikely.
Football Insider reports that Liverpool isn't happy with the situation. Both clubs are expected to talk before the January transfer window, when Elliott might be brought back.
Slot said he knows how Elliott must feel as he struggles to get playing time at Villa. During a press conference before Liverpool's game with Leeds, the Reds manager seemed to feel for the 22-year-old’s situation.
Slot said he hasn't talked to him much; I haven’t had contact with him a lot, I think only once or twice, and that was before he played Feyenoord away and after, Slot said. But that had more to do with him playing against a former club of mine, so no, I haven’t spoken to him.
“I am aware of his situation, of course. I knew how difficult it already was for him over here, so I think I know how he feels at this moment, but you should ask those questions at Villa and not over here when it’s about his playing time.”
MOHAMED SALAH SET TO LEAVE LIVERPOOL: FENERBAHCE PREPARE STUNNING THREE-YEAR CONTRACT OFFER
After a decade at Anfield, Mohamed Salah's next move is the talk of football. Will he join Messi or stay in European leagues?
Mohamed Salah looks set to leave Liverpool this summer, and it sounds like he wants to stay in Europe. One of the hottest rumours right now is about Fenerbahçe; they’re ready to offer him a three-year deal worth around £52 million. That’s a huge pay packet, but probably not as big as what he’d get in Saudi Arabia.
Salah’s been on Merseyside for almost a decade, and it’s hard to overstate just how much he’s done for Liverpool. Since joining in 2017 with Jurgen Klopp in charge, he’s picked up two Premier League titles, a Champions League medal, an FA Cup, and two League Cups. Pretty impressive, honestly. But this season hasn’t gone his way, and new boss Arne Slot dropped him for a few games after his form dipped. When Salah announced in March that he’d be leaving, people started up with transfer rumours right away.
In recent years, clubs from the Saudi Pro League have shown considerable interest. Last year, Al Ittihad went as far as slapping a £150 million offer on the table, but Liverpool turned it down.
Now the story goes that Salah wants to stay in Europe even though he’d pocket way more in Saudi Arabia. Reports out of Egypt claim Fenerbahce, managed by Jose Mourinho’s old club, have already sat down with Salah’s agent. They apparently laid out their big plans, offering £17.3 million a year with a three-year contract, and they want to build the team around him to end their league title drought stretching back to 2014.
There’s also talk of Real Madrid getting involved. Still, their transfer policy usually steers clear of handing massive contracts to players pushing the end of their careers, even superstars like Salah. Clubs in Italy, like Roma, Juventus, and Inter Milan, are keeping tabs on him too. And just to make things more interesting, someone floated the idea of Salah joining up with Lionel Messi at Inter Miami in the MLS, though the league's salary cap throws a wrench into that.
At this point, everybody’s watching Salah’s next move; the only certainty is that he won’t be short of offers when he finally says goodbye to Liverpool.
WHY IS LIVERPOOL HESITATING TO HIRE XABI ALONSO DESPITE OVERWHELMING FAN SUPPORT?
Liverpool has contacted Real Madrid to investigate Xabi Alonso’s tenure, as pressure grows on current manager Arne Slot at Anfield.
Liverpool have reached out to Real Madrid to ask about Xabi Alonso, but honestly, there’s some debate going on behind the scenes. People have been talking about Alonso stepping in at Anfield, especially since Arne Slot’s season hasn’t gone over well. Fans let out some boos after that 1-1 draw with Chelsea, and the mood is pretty tense. Even though Slot led Liverpool to a league title last year, quite a few supporters seem fed up with him and would rather see Alonso take charge.
But Spanish outlet AS says Liverpool have contacted Real Madrid to get the inside scoop on what happened during Alonso’s time at the club. It sounds like the decision-makers at Liverpool are starting to feel unsure about him, and they might actually stick with Slot for another season.
Alonso landed the Real Madrid job last summer after doing wonders at Bayer Leverkusen. Still, just six months in, Madrid let him go, reportedly because the locker room was falling apart. Liverpool’s relationship with Real Madrid is strong, and they apparently want some honest feedback – kind of like asking for a reference from a past employer, which isn’t unusual.
Liverpool’s spot in next year’s Champions League is almost locked in, but with two games left, it’s not guaranteed yet. When asked about the boos, Slot admitted he has some work to do to win fans over.
He said, “Not this season. Fans won’t change their minds now. But if we get the summer we’re planning, I’m convinced we’ll be a different team next season. Results, style, everything. It’s not always easy, though. Sometimes you know what needs fixing, but getting what you want isn’t so simple. This season, it’s been pretty clear what we’re missing. We’re trying to solve it, but one issue is simply having enough fit players. Still, our guys show every week in the second half that they’re giving everything they’ve got.”
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