Aston Villa and Liverpool ready for showdown talks over Harvey Elliott, deal terms could now change
Aston Villa are preparing to open talks with Liverpool over their loan agreement for Harvey Elliott.
Elliott has struggled for minutes at Villa this season, with Unai Emery being left unsure by the attacking midfielder since his introduction.
The fact that 10 appearances would mark a £35million obligation to buy hasn’t helped matters and had limited the Englishman to just five appearances until recently.
He was a shock starter against RB Salzburg in the Europa League before coming off the bench as Villa lost 1-0 to Brentford last time out.
It seems that the opinion on Elliott has changed somewhat as new conversations look set to kick off with Arne Slot and Co.
Aston Villa prepare Harvey Elliott talks with Liverpool
Villa fans have wanted to see more of the England under-21 international this campiagn and are starting to get their wish.
As positive as that seems, there are only three games left in his contract until the Villans would be forced to pay out their sizable loan obligation fee.
That has prompted many to question why the agreement can’t be altered to benefit all parties across the second half of the season.
Liverpool could now green-light changes with Tom Collomosse reporting on Monday that the Reds and Villa are set for talks over Elliott’s loan.
These discussions can wait until after the winter transfer deadline has passed despite frustrations over the deal not benefiting the player or either club.
Villa could see the appearance target raised for his permanent signing obligation or the fee could be slashed in half.
Aston Villa could sign Elliott for £17.5m in summer
There is no real desire for Villa to spend £35m on the Englishman in the next window, mainly due to the form of Emi Buendia this summer.
That feeling would likely change if there was an opportunity to sign a talented attacker for a fee closer to the £17.5m mark.
Cutting his current loan obligation in half will benefit all parties and can help Elliott reach a similar level to that of the U21 European Championship last summer.
The discussions now rely on Liverpool and what sort of fee they are willing to accept, but if the deal remains in it’s current state, they’ll get nothing out of Villa.
They will be keen to get something from Elliott and won’t want this campaign to have been a total waste for themselves and the 22-year-old.
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