Harvey Elliott has made one appearance all season as he has been out injured for Liverpool since September, but the midfielder is stepping up his recovery.
Liverpool have been handed a welcome boost by Harvey Elliott stepping up his recovery from injury. The midfielder has been pictured on the training pitch for the first time since suffering a foot fracture.
The 21-year-old had only made one substitute cameo under Arne Slot before joining up with England Under-21s in September. He would return with a fracture, one that has sidelined him for four weeks since.
“Harvey is of course a big disappointment for him but also for us,” said the Reds head coach in offering his reaction. “Okay, he didn’t play that much in the first three games but he played a lot in pre-season and showed himself really well. If he had stayed fit he would have had a lot of playing time in the upcoming fixtures, but now it gives a chance to someone else.
“It’s first and foremost a blow for himself but for also for us, availability is important in the stage of the season when we play seven games in 22 days. He will work as hard as always to come back in the best possible way.”
Now a month on since that blow, Liverpool have sent supporters a positive update on Monday evening with the first published pictures of Elliott returning to training at the AXA Training Centre. The first showed him ramping up his rehabilitation in the gym:
Then, more images that quickly followed showed the No.19 working with the coaches out in one-to-one fitness sessions on the outdoor pitches, which look very quiet with the rest of the Reds’ squad away representing various countries or simply granted leave for the time being:
Just as he has missed Liverpool’s previous seven fixtures, Elliott is expected to continue his absence for Chelsea’s visit to Anfield on Sunday. The fact he is out on the turf is a promising sign for a return to full training soon, but not until then will he be deemed match ready.
Even though the player himself posted a positive update on social media last week, he is not going to be rushed back sooner than necessary so a return closer to the end of the month makes for a more reasonable prediction.
