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The future of Harvey Elliott is becoming increasingly uncertain as his loan stint away from Liverpool continues.
The former Reds midfielder departed Anfield during the summer transfer window to join Aston Villa on loan. Elliott left Liverpool in pursuit of more consistent first-team soccer, a decision made following the acquisition of Florian Wirtz during the summer window.
Arne Slot's team was further bolstered by the arrivals of Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, Giorgi Mamardashvili, Giovanni Leoni, and Freddie Woodman. Liverpool approved Elliott's departure on the final day of the transfer window, but the move hasn't entirely gone according to plan since the 22-year-old left Anfield.
Elliott has only made three Premier League appearances, starting just one top-flight match, with his last league appearance dating back to September 28. Villa manager Unai Emery hasn't included Elliott in the matchday squad for the past three Premier League matches, although the midfielder was ineligible to play against Liverpool last month due to league loan regulations.
Liverpool incorporated a mandatory purchase clause in the loan deal that saw Elliott join Villa. However, various reports suggest this will only be triggered if Elliott makes 10 appearances for Villa. There's now chatter about whether Liverpool might recall Elliott in January, given Villa's reluctance to give him regular playing time.
Liverpool does have the option to bring back Elliott in the New Year, but if he plays five more times for Villa before then, a return to Anfield would be off the table.
Another factor is that Elliott has already played for both Liverpool and Villa this season, which means he can't join another club in January due to the rule preventing players from representing more than two clubs in a single season.
Liverpool is expected to monitor Elliott's progress at Villa closely until the terms of the obligation to buy are officially activated.
Liverpool also needs to consider that Mohamed Salah will be unavailable for a significant part of the season later on.
Salah is expected to join Egypt for the Africa Cup of Nations in December and January, leaving Liverpool without a key attacker for several weeks.
If Egypt summons Salah to the team's training camp before matches against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on December 6, Jordan on December 9, and Nigeria on December 14 in preparation for the winter tournament and then reach the final, the forward could miss as many as 11 games.
However, the Liverpool striker is poised to make it clear that he doesn't want to be released for the AFCON until as late as possible, so as not to miss key matches.
During his stint at Liverpool, Elliott was occasionally deployed on the right wing and could have been a potential replacement for Salah if he were still at Anfield.
If he continues to be sidelined from the Villa team and Arne Slot desires, there's an option to recall him to fill in during the Egyptian's absence.
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