Harvey Elliott must forget about trying to become part of Liverpool's fabled front-three and work to establish himself fully as a midfielder starter.
That's according to former Anfield great John Barnes who made his name as a flying winger before injury forced him to recreate himself as a vital cog in the engine room later in his career.
Elliott has made 26 appearances for the Reds so far this season, scoring three goals and becoming a regular name in Jurgen Klopp's matchday squad. But his run of games has coincided with Liverpool's inconsistent league form and questions have been asked regarding what the 19-year-old's most effective position is. Barnes however, believes that the answer lies in simply looking at the competition for places that the former Fulham youngster faces right now.
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Speaking to BonusCodeBets, Barnes said: “Harvey Elliott isn’t going to play ahead of Salah, Diaz, Nunez or Jota as a winger. He has to get used to playing as one of the three midfield players. He’s still young and growing so he is going to be inconsistent. Especially when he’s still learning a new role.
"Harvey is also playing in a team that is very inconsistent. You can’t blame Harvey Elliott because I believe every time he’s played he’s done as well as he could."
Liverpool's painful defeat at Brentford on Tuesday leaves them seven points adrift of the top four and with Champions League qualification for next season looking like a real battle, calls have been made by supporters for the club to make immediate investments in the midfield area.
That request would seem likely in the summer at least, if not earlier, but Barnes insists that Liverpool must adapt their style now with the players that they have and protect their younger players like Elliott as they seek to develop.
He added: “To get the best out of Harvey, Liverpool have to defend better to allow him to attack. We are changing the way we play and we have more creativity in midfield which means when we haven’t got the ball teams are getting at us. We have to get that right balance. Harvey and [Fabio] Carvalho are young and have to grow. Arsenal players went through a similar situation a few years ago so we have to protect them. I’m not concerned with the young players.”
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