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Harvey Elliott suffered another blow to his disastrous loan spell at Aston Villa with the Liverpool midfielder omitted once again from Sunday's matchday squad.
The 22-year-old was not named on the bench for Villa’s clash with Bournemouth and has not played in the Premier League since September.
He was left out of the matchday roster for the win over Manchester City two weeks ago and was ineligible to face parent club Liverpool last week. Elliott was named on the bench for the midweek Europa League win over Maccabi Tel Aviv, but did not even make it off the bench in a heavily rotated side.
The former Fulham man joined Villa on deadline day as part of a loan move that includes an obligation to buy.
It’s unclear what the terms are on that clause, but it’s understood that a number of appearances or starts could trigger the criteria to make the deal permanent.
However, whether Elliott has a long-term future at Villa Park is looking increasingly unlikely. He has played just five times for the Villans and was replaced at half-time in his one league start for the club.
Unai Emery has not hidden his frustration at Elliott’s performance levels.
“He is training well, and he played some matches, but the performances weren't what we needed," said Emery two weeks ago.
“Some players are playing as a no.10, and they are playing well, like [Emiliano] Buendia and [Morgan] Rogers, also Ross Barkley after he was out.
“In the squad today we needed to take one player out, and I decided for him. I am happy with him. He is training good. His commitment is fantastic and he is a good guy. Only tactical decision.
“I spoke with him about it and my advice was to keep going. He's a very good player, only our demands are at a high level and some players and how they are performing last year and this year, are playing in the same position.
"We signed him because I believe in him. He will need time."
Despite Emery's claims, it is clear the Spaniard is not convinced by Elliott.
Ahead of the January window, Liverpool, Villa and Elliott could be faced with an awkward decision on whether to cut their losses and move one, or hope the loan move can be rectified.
Elliott posted an emotional farewell to Liverpool when he departed in the summer and evidently believed he had played his final match for the club.
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