Such has been the level of progress made by Harvey Elliott since he joined Liverpool that handing him a second new deal in the space of 12 months seems entirely appropriate.
The 19-year-old, who arrived at Liverpool from Fulham in the summer of 2019 for a fee that was eventually determined by tribunal to be up to £4.3m, a world record fee for a 16-year-old who had never signed a professional contract.
Liverpool held the belief that his value stood at around £750,000, while Fulham had been wanting more than 10 times that amount for a player they felt had the potential to be a world class operator.
READ MORE: Harvey Elliott and Liverpool agree new long-term contract
As often happens, the value in the eyes of the law fell somewhere in between, with Liverpool ordered to pay £1.5m immediately and the rest when Elliott hit various milestones. Such has been the level of progress, aided in no small part by a hugely successful season spent at Championship side Blackburn Rovers in 2020/21, that those milestones will likely be hit rather easily.
The popular view on Liverpool in the transfer market is that they are more thrifty that their rivals, the purse strings a bit tougher to loosen. That may be true in some cases, although the club would undoubtedly look to the summer investment of close on £100m for Darwin Nunez, Fabio Carvalho and Calvin Ramsey as evidence that they do spend.
But one area that has increased year on year at Liverpool, pretty much since Fenway Sports Group took control, is that of the wage bill.
While there was an £11m drop in the 2020/21 accounts published earlier this year, the absence of the Champions League bonuses that appeared before meant that payroll had actually grown in real terms after new deals for the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker and Fabinho. With Mohamed Salah's new deal to be accounted for in the 2022/23 accounts, likely due early 2024, the wage liabilities will have increased even further.
Wages rise in line with the success of the club on and off the field, and progression is rewarded with terms that are appropriate. That is the carrot that is dangled and one that keeps the fires stoked. Players, particularly the younger or more inexperienced members of the squad know that by contributing and making progression there are financial rewards.
According to metrics provided by analysts at the CIES Football Observatory in Switzerland, Elliott's market value stands between €10m and €20m. In reality it is hard to think of Liverpool placing a value on him of anything less than £30m. But that valuation was based upon a 2026 end date to his contract. The longer the deal, especially for younger players, the higher the market value.
Liverpool have been masters of player trading when it comes to younger players, with Jordon Ibe, Dominic Solanke, Harry Wilson and Rhian Brewster, to name a few, bringing in a combined £69.5m despite limited first team impact.
Elliott is different. There is a sense among the staff at Anfield that he can be a player to be a genuine star for the Reds longer term, and in rewarding his progression at various stages it ensures that he remains happy in his environment, his remuneration is in line with contribution and potential and that they have the strongest hand possible should he shine to the point of attracting interest from clubs willing to open their wallets and test Liverpool's resolve.
FSG aren't really in the business of handing out money for the sake of it. Every financial decision has to have its merits.
Often when deals are extended midway through an existing contract it is done to also reduce the amortisation charge for signing the player in the first place, with transfer fees spread over the life of the contract of the player when they sign. But given the low guaranteed sum for Elliott that wouldn't have been a factor for FSG in this instance, this is about both rewarding a player and protecting an asset.
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