Liverpool to pay record compensation fee to Fulham for Harvey Elliott

Liverpool have been forced to pay substantial compensation to Fulham following the transfer of England Under-17 forward Harvey Elliott.

Elliott signed his first professional contract with the Reds as a 17-year-old in July 2020, having made his debut for the club in an EFL Carabao Cup match against MK Dons in 2019, becoming the youngest player to start a game in Liverpool's history.

The Fulham youth product went on to make 13 appearances for Jürgen Klopp's side before moving to Blackburn on a season-long loan in October 2020 and he has played 23 games and scored four goals this season for Rovers. Elliott became the Premier League's youngest ever player while at Fulham, playing in a 1-0 defeat to Wolves in May 2019, and has been capped at England under-15, under-16 and under-17 level.

After the clubs could not agree a fee at the time of his transfer, the case went to tribunal, and the Professional Football Compensation Committee (PFCC) made its judgement on Wednesday. The London club revealed in a statement that they are "very pleased" to be awarded a record compensation fee for a 16-year-old player.

"The Professional Football Compensation Committee has today given its decision with regards to the compensation payable following Harvey Elliott's move to Liverpool in 2019," said the statement. "Under the Youth Development Rules, the PFCC is tasked with assessing the compensation due for a player who leaves an Academy at the end of his registration, if the parties cannot agree the figure between themselves.   After a full hearing, the PFCC has decided that Fulham should be entitled to substantial compensation. The award [undisclosed] is a record amount for a 16-year-old player and, in the circumstances, Fulham is very pleased and thanks the PFCC for its careful consideration of the arguments we put forward."