Fabrizio Romano confirms Liverpool star’s expectations have NOT been met amid deal cancellation hints | OneFootball

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed a deal Liverpool made over the summer has not panned out as the player expected, and there are growing suggestions the move could be aborted.

The bulk of Liverpool’s summer signings have struggled to get to grips with life at Anfield so far. In truth, only Hugo Ekitike can hold his head up high.

It’s a similar story for some of the players they let go who have endured slow starts at their respective new clubs.

Trent Alexander-Arnold has made no impact at Real Madrid, while Kostas Tsimikas can’t get a game during his loan spell with Roma.

Closer to home, Harvey Elliott has swapped restricted minutes at Liverpool for even more restricted minutes at Villa Park.

The 22-year-old joined Aston Villa on a season-long loan that contains a conditional obligation to buy worth £35m.

Elliott is a boyhood Liverpool fan and only chose to begrudgingly leave Liverpool for the benefit of his career and extra playing time.

Yet Elliott has racked up just five appearances in a Villa shirt so far, with those outings totalling just 168 minutes of action.

Last time out in Villa’s biggest win of the season against Manchester City, Elliott didn’t even make the matchday squad.

Manager Unai Emery spoke highly of the player when asked about the snub, though explained the omission as a “tactical decision.” In other words, Emery saw no value or benefit in including Elliott in his squad.

Now, transfer guru, Fabrizio Romano, has confirmed the dish Elliott is being served at Villa Park is not what he signed up for.

“Of course, it’s not an easy moment for him,” wrote Romano earlier this week. “Elliott expected to play way more.

“But Emery is protecting him in private and in public, still backing him and waiting for him to reach his best level.

“He is going to work harder and try to fix the situation.”

Harvey Elliott could return to Liverpool

As mentioned, Elliott’s loan contains a conditional obligation to buy. If activated, Aston Villa will pay £35m to sign the playmaker outright.

According to The Athletic, the condition that triggers the obligation is Elliott making 10 appearances this season.

The report did not specify whether those appearances have to consist of a certain number of minutes, or if they must come in a specific competition, such as the Premier League, or whether all competitions count.

Some outlets have stated all competitions count, while others have suggested it’s only the Premier League. In truth, they’re probably just guessing and the finer details in that part of the clause aren’t public knowledge just yet.

In any case, what is clear is Emery doesn’t seem to fancy Elliott and thus far, he’s made only five appearances in a Villa shirt.

If we continue to see Elliott remain rooted to the bench, the 22-year-old may wind up back at Anfield next summer.

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