On Monday, Andoni Iraola sat down for his first interview as Liverpool's new head coach and offered a lifeline to a forgotten talent. Harvey Elliott, the 23-year-old midfielder who spent last season on loan at Aston Villa under a £35m obligation to buy that never kicked in, may yet have a future at Anfield. "For me, you are all new signings," Iraola said. "I think we have a lot of quality in our squad."
Liverpool parted ways with Arne Slot on Saturday and moved quickly to secure Iraola on a two-year contract after he led Bournemouth to sixth in the Premier League, securing European football for the first time in the club's history. But reservations remain about his lack of big-club and European experience. Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy, now a Match of the Day pundit and BBC Sport columnist, admitted: "I do have a couple of reservations because he's never managed a club of this size before." Still, Murphy believes the Reds are "better placed now" and that Iraola's appointment brings "hope and excitement, rather than fear."
“Iraola says every Liverpool player is a 'new signing', offering Harvey Elliott a fresh start after a difficult loan spell.”
That hope extends to Elliott, who was a consistent presence under Jurgen Klopp but saw his chances dwindle under Slot. He made 28 appearances in Slot's first season, a sharp drop from 53 and 46 in the two preceding campaigns. Sent to Aston Villa in September 2025 with an obligation to buy if he played 10 Premier League games, Elliott featured only nine times and was omitted from the squad for much of the season. He squandered a World Cup year at an age when he should be playing week in, week out.
Iraola, however, is starting with a clean slate. "Right now, for me the thing is to value especially the players that we have right now in the squad," he said. "I will tell them, you are all new signings." The Basque manager also revealed he had already spoken to a few players and looked forward to working with Milos Kerkez, whom he coached at Bournemouth. For Elliott, those words signal a second chance.
Murphy, while broadly optimistic, warned that Iraola's high-intensity style requires a squad capable of sustained pressing. "The summer transfer window is huge for Liverpool," he said. But for players already in the building, the message is clear: every one of them starts from zero.