Andoni Iraola makes his feelings clear on "eager" Harvey Elliott's Liverpool future

Andoni Iraola is officially up and running as Liverpool head coach. The Basque manager conducted his first press conference at the AXA Training Centre on Monday morning, outlining his vision for the club's future.

Facing the media for the first time since replacing Arne Slot, Iraola didn't hide from the massive challenge ahead. He laid down a clear marker for the squad, promising a high-intensity, aggressive reset to kickstart a new era at Anfield.

During his 20-minute debut in front of the assembled media, the Spaniard openly addressed plenty of big topics, one of which was whether or not Harvey Elliott still had a future at Anfield.

The Englishman's time on Merseyside appeared over when, on deadline day last summer, he joined Aston Villa on loan with an option to buy.

A few weeks earlier before the transfer was complete, Elliott had been named player of the tournament for England at the under-21 Euros, scoring five goals as the Young Lions retained the trophy in Bratislava, with many believing this was an excellent piece of business for Villa.

However, Unai Emery seemingly did not agree. Were he to make ten appearances for the Villans, this would activate a £35 million purchase option, and Emery decided pretty quickly that he did not want to pay that fee.

As a result, Elliott appeared, you guessed it, nine times for Villa, accumulating a miserly 277 minutes across all competition. Thus, it was a completely wasted campaign for the 23 year old, but the question now is, what next? Well, here is what his new boss had to say when asked if Elliott was in his plans:

What Andoni Iraola said about Harvey Elliott's future

"Definitely! Harvey is here with us, I have seen him with the eagerness to show up, get super ready, he will have a chance in pre-season, we will need him... I think Harvey comes from last season had to be difficult for him, strange situation, they could not even play him... the bad situation [will] make himself even more eager to be a Liverpool player."

Why might Andoni Iraola want to keep Harvey Elliott at Liverpool?

Not much reading between the lines is needed, Iraola stated in not uncertain terms that Elliott is part of his plans. The statement "he'll have a chance in pre-season, we'll need him" is the most revealing, certainly to begin with.

Given Liverpool's World Cup representatives, Iraola only has an extremely limited senior squad with which to work with once pre-season training commences on Tuesday 14th July ahead of their pre season tour where they travel to the United States and have fixtures in America against Sunderland, Wrexham and Leeds United.

Liverpool players reporting for pre-season training on 14 July

• Goalkeepers: Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman & Ármin Pécsi.

• Defenders: Jeremie Frimpong, Jérémy Jacquet, Joe Gomez, Kostas Tsimikas & Miloš Kerkez.

• Midfielders: Dominik Szoboszlai, Harvey Elliott, Curtis Jones, Trey Nyoni & James McConnell.

• Forwards: Federico Chiesa & Rio Ngumoha.

Thus, right now, for mere practical reasons, if nothing else, Iraola can't afford to allow Elliott to go anywhere, as his options are pretty threadbare. So expect him to feature prominently throughout pre-season, but will this lead to him being in the new manager's plans longer-term?

How Harvey Elliott could fit into an Andoni Iraola team

One of his greatest assets is his versatility, something we forecast Iraola will massively appreciate. He can be deployed as part of a midfield trio or on the right-wing of attack. How Iraola chooses to use him once the pre-season matches get underway will be something to keep an eye on.

With Mohamed Salah departing, a spot is currently available on the right-hand side of attack. Liverpool are likely to make a statement signing for this role, with Yan Diomandé and Bradley Barcola among their more ambitious reported targets. Meanwhile Víctor Muñoz has arrived from Osasuna for £34.5 million, currently at the World Cup with Spain, albeit he is more comfortable on the left.

For now, the right wing spot might just be Elliott's to lose, and his high-energy, all-action style should slot right into an Iraola team nicely. He is clearly a massive talent, still only 23 years old, determined to show what he can do, following a year of no consistent football which was out of his control and that weren't his fault.

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