Jurgen Klopp already gave Unai Emery clear message on Harvey Elliott and Liverpool return

Jurgen Klopp has already suggested Unai Emery could come to regret snubbing Harvey Elliott having tried to fix his own Liverpool error. It was the German who was at the Anfield helm when Elliott signed for the club in 2019, at just 16 years old.

Originally a winger, it was under Klopp's guidance that Elliott transitioned into a central midfield role, making an impressive 149 appearances for the Reds and securing five major trophies, including two Premier League titles. Despite his affection for Liverpool, Elliott sought a new challenge last month, joining Aston Villa on loan. The Villans are committed to paying a £35million fee to make the transfer permanent next year once the 22-year-old has made 10 appearances for the club.

Even though he had a limited role under Arne Slot last season, Elliott demonstrated his potential by leading England's U21 team to victory in the European Championship this past summer, earning the title of best player at the tournament. Klopp, who is a big fan of the midfielder, confessed that one of his main regrets during his nine-year stint at Anfield was not giving Elliott more playing time.

It was in May 2024 that he said: "It's not that I go back and think, 'OK, what did we all do wrong?' But if I regret one thing a little bit, it's that Harvey didn't play often enough, maybe. Because in a very important, intense period - January, with a lot of injuries - he played really well.

"He was probably our best player - right wing, right midfield, all these kinds of things. Then everybody came back, and he had minutes here, minutes there, and he didn't start anymore." Elliott spoke candidly about his future during the summer, and it was Klopp, now Red Bull's Global Head of Soccer, who made contact through RB Leipzig.

The German side showed interest in securing the midfielder's signature before he opted to remain in England. Regrettably for Elliott, his switch to the Midlands has yet to bear fruit, as he has been relegated to a substantial bench role following his September arrival.

He has only started two matches across all competitions for Villa and was notably absent from the matchday squad during their 1-0 triumph over Manchester City on Sunday. Villa manager Unai Emery outlined his expectations for his squad amid Elliott's limited opportunities, stating: "I am being very, very demanding myself to choose in each match the player to start and the players on the bench and the subs players, and firstly is always trying to get the best performance collectively, through individual players.

"Harvey is a 10 number in our structure, in our shape, and he plays some matches and there is still adaptation to add himself individually in our structure, the task we have. Of course, he is training well, and his commitment is being very well as well, but his performance was not enough."

The Spaniard continued: "At the same time, we have other players who can play as a 10 and they are performing well, and I have different players. This is the main reason he is not playing the last matches.

"But he has to continue working like he is doing in the training session and of course getting his confidence in the performance we need through him."

Whilst the chances appear remote, the opportunity hasn't completely vanished for Elliott to stage a sensational comeback to Anfield if Emery persists in overlooking him for his matchday squad. However, Klopp's remarks indicate that could prove to be an error from the Villa manager, given it's a decision he himself later came to rue.