Premier League wonderkids past and present have been the talk of the town of late.
Max Dowman, 15, became the second-youngest player to grace the Premier League in August, his Arsenal teammate Ethan Nwaneri having broken the record in 2022.
Their futures are still to be written, while at the other end of the spectrum Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen kept social media ticking along during the international break as both weighed in on who was the more prolific teenager.
Their playing days are of course over, while somewhere in between are the myriad of past wonderkids scattered across the football pyramid.
Harvey Elliott, once the youngest Premier League player himself, has already achieved more than most cast into this same spotlight, and now 22 he has taken the bold step to tearfully leave boyhood club Liverpool in search of regular football.
Elliott signed for Aston Villa on deadline day, initially on a season-long loan deal with an obligation to buy for £35m.
That could yet prove a bargain when you consider the price of other English wingers who moved this summer, as neither Tyler Dibling (to Everton for £40m) nor Jacob Ramsey (to Newcastle for £43m) come close to boasting Elliott’s experience and numbers.
Elliott scored 14 goals in 28 games for England’s U21s, was their Player of the Tournament when the Young Lions defended their Euros title this summer, and rubbed shoulders with fellow right winger Mohammed Salah during his six years at Liverpool.
That alone is an education, and the pair evidently struck up a close bond. “You leave as a champion… They are lucky to have you,” Salah said, to which Elliott thanked the “king” for being “more than a brother to me”.
Salah had even once told Elliott to swap white bread for brown in his diet, but be it tactical or nutritional advice worth savouring, there was one issue: the apprentice was being starved of opportunities.
Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp called it one of his big “regrets” at the club, as the elasticity of Salah – who boasts an enviable injury record – ultimately shut the door on Elliott, who started 35 league games for the Reds and came off the bench 58 times, as did Salah’s contract extension.
The No 10 position was one Elliott also hoped to grab, but after breaking his foot in September last season there was no route back into the starting XI under new boss Arne Slot – and then along came Florian Wirtz, also 22, for a mere £116.5m to block this path even more.
The Wirtz transfer was in the offing but not yet completed when Elliott was seen crying at Anfield after their Premier League trophy lift in May. He knew what was coming, and what he would have to do.
“I don’t really want to be wasting years on my career because it’s a short career,” he acknowledged.
“I just want to improve and be the best possible version of myself. If that’s to go somewhere else, then it’s a decision that I’m going to have to make.
“Nothing makes me want to leave. I love the club, I love the fans, the team. I support them as well. But most importantly, it’s just about what’s best for my career.”
Others in his predicament – given he is a Liverpool fan – may have stayed, but once Alexander Isak’s move to Liverpool was confirmed on deadline day, the club were happy to green light Elliott’s loan to Villa.
Notably, Liverpool have installed a buy-back clause in the deal, which speaks of their reluctance to let him go and a career that could circle back to Anfield.
Villa, meanwhile, had a difficult summer transfer window that has translated into a shocking start in the Premier League, where they are yet to score and have just one point after three games.
Nevertheless, their deadline-day hat-trick makes for some optimism, with Victor Lindelof and Jadon Sancho also signing for the club.
The additions give head coach Unai Emery essentially two players for every position, and when fit there is a strong possibility Villa will start with an all-English front four.
Elliott on the right wing, Sancho on the left, Morgan Rogers as the No 10 and Ollie Watkins up front. It is enough to excite Villa fans after a forgetful month, and with all four at various stages in their England careers, they could yet push one another to make the plane to North America next summer.
“I think it’s exciting, and playing with England players who have a point to prove, in the sense that they will want to be in the England squad too, playing with them at a club level will help,” Rogers said.
When asked what Elliott and Sancho would add, Rogers added: “Creativity – both of them. They play with freedom, and they get fans off their seats.”
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And it is not like Elliott has been wasting away at Liverpool. He was often Klopp’s go-to player from the bench, and even under Slot he would come to their rescue, notably at Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League last year.
Elliott then stood out at the U21 Euros this summer, with five goals there – including a solo stunner in the semi-final – some way to bow out given he can no longer represent the Young Lions.
So step forward Elliott 2.0, the one-time wonderkid who has been forced to grow up and recognise a difficult reality during what has been a transitional summer.
In moving though he has shown he is no cowardly young lion, instead displaying a courage that could yet transform him into a beast that thrives as Emery’s pet project and delivers silverware – at last – to Villa Park.
The second chapter therefore brings promise, and should he continue to put football first – choosing head over heart – then a first senior England call-up awaits, while his trajectory will make him a role model for the next wave of superstar teens to come.
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