Richard Hughes has £35m bargaining chip to help bring 'unbelievable' ace to Liverpool | OneFootball

Richard Hughes' time as Liverpool's sporting director has delivered a mixed bag of results.

Although the transfers of players such as Federico Chiesa haven't really gone to plan, the arrival of others such as Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz have been applauded.

But, seeing as though the Anfield outfit are nowhere near the top of the Premier League table, it's clear that some more changes need to be made with some new faces having to be brought in.

Several top-class players have already been linked with a transfer to L4 but at the moment, it's unclear what the Reds' priority will be.

However, in their pursuit for one of their long-term targets, it seems like the Reds could have a bargaining chip that they can play in order to make the deal run smoother.

Liverpool could use Harvey Elliott to entice Fulham into selling Antonee Robinson

Harvey Elliott is an expectational talent, there's no two ways about it.

The Englishman was Jurgen Klopp's starboy as the German tried to fit him into his starting XI whenever possible.

However, since Arne Slot became the manager, Elliott was given less playing time which resulted in him joining Aston Villa on a season-long loan deal with an obligation to buy worth around £35 million after he'd played 10 games for them.

And, even though many thought this was a done deal, Unai Emery has turned his back on the 22-year-old and has refused to play him past the 10-game threshold, resulting in the youngster stagnating.

So, this means that Elliott will be back at Anfield next season, but, since the Reds already have multiple players in his position, they're likely to try and source another exit route for the midfielder.

This is where Fulham and Antonee Robinson come in.

Liverpool have been interested in Robinson for as long as many can remember.

The left-back has attracted interest from many Premier League clubs but, since Fulham want between £30 and £40 million for him, a deal could be hard to agree upon.

However, if the Anfield outfit end up using Elliott as a bargaining chip, it could make things much simpler.

Harvey Elliott isn't likely to have a future at Liverpool

Even though there have been times when Elliott has been Liverpool's best player, it's clear that with players such as Florian Wirtz and Dominik Szoboszlai ahead of him, it's highly unlikely that Slot will choose to play him.

This means that Elliott will be on the move once again and, since he's hardly played any football this season, his value will be much lower than it was last term.

So, if the Reds can swap the youngster for the "unbelievable" Robinson, it makes plenty of sense.

and, Liverpool will get a back-up option at left-back.

On the face of things, this looks like a win-win situation for all the involved parties, which is why using Elliott as a bit of a bargaining chip is a viable option.