Search icon

Football

06th Feb 2022

Harvey Elliott thanks physio in heartwarming interview after five-month absence

Daniel Brown

‘He took me in the early hours of the morning and didn’t finish until late at night’

Harvey Elliott thanked one of the Liverpool physio’s for helping him return to action after suffering a nasty injury in September.

The 18-year-old suffered a fracture dislocation to his left ankle during the Reds’ Premier League clash with Leeds, which saw him undergo an operation two days later.

However, the former Fulham man was declared fit again sooner than most expected, and the youngster enjoyed a dream comeback against Cardiff City on Sunday.

Jurgen Klopp brought him on in the second half of their FA Cup clash with the Bluebirds and scored his first goal for Liverpool in the 76th minute with a stunning strike.

Speaking to ITV after Liverpool’s 3-1 victory over Steve Morison’s side, Elliott admitted that it was ‘hard to put into words’ how he felt after returning to the field.

“It’s still hard to put into words at the moment,” he said. “This is what I’m in the team to do, score and assist.

“Thankfully it came in front of the fans after a long time out. It’s my job, at the end of the day, I’ve got to keep doing it.

“It’s a moment myself and my family will remember.”

Discussing his goal, Elliott added: “It wasn’t too bad! Watching my man next to me, Diogo [Jota], he’s been banging them in left, right and centre so have been getting a few tops off him.

“You’ve just got to finish it how it comes and was thankful I was able to do it.”

The attacking midfielder also named several people that he wanted to thank after they helped him get back onto the pitch so quickly after the injury.

“The list goes on. One man most important was Joe Lewis, one of the physios. He took me in the early hours of the morning and didn’t finish until late at night,” Elliott said.

“He got me back strong again. The list could go on. Big shout out to all my family and friends, especially my mum and dad. They helped and supported me throughout.

“Just a massive thank you to everyone at LFC, even the fans for their support and love when I did it.

“I’m back now and that injury is behind me.”

Reds boss Klopp praised Elliott for his reaction to getting injured and admitted he was ‘lucky’ with the success of his recovery.

He told ITV: “He was unlucky with the injury, but lucky with the whole process afterwards. It went really well, he did an incredible job and our medical department did an incredible job.

“He was patient, but also desperate to come back. He’s a fearless boy and a grateful footballer. When you are that young you deal with it, and he did from the first day.

“Now that he’s back and got the goal it was a really touching moment, to be honest.”

Liverpool will now face-off against Norwich City at home in the next round of the FA Cup.

Related links: