Harvey Elliott will have the chance to make his case for a squad role at Liverpool in pre-season, according to The Athletic's James Pearce.

The lowdown

The winger spent the 2020/21 campaign on loan at Blackburn Rovers in the Championship and the 18-year-old finished the season as their joint-third highest scorer with seven goals in 42 appearances.

More impressively, he was third in the division overall for assists with 11, behind only Reading's Michael Olise (12) and Norwich City's Emiliano Buendia (16).

Elliott featured in Goal's 'Next Gen 50', a list of the best wonderkids in football, while his then-Blackburn team-mate Elliott Bennett raved about him in January, dubbing him a 'special, special player'.

The latest

Writing for The Athletic, Pearce has said that Elliott 'will get opportunities' to shine in Liverpool's pre-season friendlies this summer.

That's because the players who have been on international duty at the European Championship or Copa America will be given three weeks' rest after their involvement in the respective tournaments has concluded.

The teenager is said to be 'determined to use that time to convince Klopp' to integrate him into the Reds' first team setup next season rather than sending him out on loan once again.

The verdict

Klopp may see no need to rush, but in Elliott he has a player who looks capable of making an instant impression at the highest level.

Who's to say he can't have a similar impact to players like Bukayo Saka or Mason Greenwood, both of whom have won senior England caps as teenagers, if enough trust is placed in him?

The competition at Liverpool may be greater, both Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane will be jetting off to the Africa Cup of Nations in January, potentially opening the door for Elliott to get a prolonged chance in the Reds' first team - if it hasn't come before then.

In other news, many Reds fans were buzzing at this development