Liverpool reach agreement to tie down talented young heir to Mohamed Salah

Talented Liverpool youngster Harvey Elliott has agreed terms to sign his first professional contract at Anfield, with the youngster poised to sign a three-year deal on his 17th birthday.

The 16-year-old joined the Reds from Fulham last summer in a deal set to cost the Reds up to £7million – and he’s already made an impact at Anfield having featured seven times this season.

But due to YTS rules, Liverpool have been unable to pin Elliott down to a professional contract until his 17th birthday.  But with the teenager due to turn 17 in April, Liverpool have now agreed terms on a deal until summer 2023, with the new arrangement set to come into effect from July 1.

Furthermore, so highly-rated by Jurgen Klopp, the Daily Mirror claims Liverpool already plan to tie Elliott down to a longer five-year deal as soon as he turns 18 – a length of contract they can only offer him when he reaches that age in April 2021.

And despite his tender years, Liverpool’s Under-23 boss Neil Critchley claims Elliott is close to making a more significant impact in the club’s first-team squad.

“He is not too far because he trains with the first team on a regular basis, so he has had first-team exposure already. The manager and the staff think a lot of him,” Critchley said after their Carabao Cup defeat to Aston Villa in December in which Liverpool played their U23s side.

Indeed, Elliott is due for another opportunity to impress when Liverpool face Chelsea in the FA Cup fifth round next week, with Klopp eager to see how he fares in a more testing enviroment.

The teenager is expected to play an increasingly-important role for Liverpool in the coming years and the left-footer is already being groomed by the club as a long-term heir to Mohamed Salah.

Elliott is being considered for a first England Under-21 call-up next month, with the Young Lions facing Andorra and Turkey in Euro 2021 qualifiers.

Elliott already holds two records as the youngest to play in the League Cup, at 15 years and 174 days, and the youngest to play in the Premier League, at 16 years and 30 days, both while with Fulham last season before joining the Reds.

Salah, meanwhile, has been advised by an Arsenal man that he’d be making a huge mistake by ditching Anfield for a transfer to Real Madrid this summer.