Harvey Elliott is at a crossroads in his Liverpool career but his Champions League heroics mean fans will always have Paris, writes LEWIS STEELE

To quote a line from the 1942 classic Casablanca, we’ll always have Paris.

That is how Harvey Elliott will see his relationship with Liverpool fans, anyway, even if his long-term future is not at Anfield.

At 21 – yes, he is still only 21 despite feeling like he has been around for years – Elliott may soon be at a crossroads in his career. He has started just four games under Arne Slot and his minutes this season have largely been in the cups or a dead-rubber Champions League game.

Liverpool are certainly in no rush to wipe their hands with Elliott, the boy they signed from Fulham after he made his Premier League debut just 30 days after his 16th birthday. But if a good enough offer came in this summer, they probably would not block him from leaving.

Yet in the dying embers of a tough night when Liverpool looked down and out in Paris, Elliott came up with the most memorable moment of his career. Just 46 seconds after replacing Mohamed Salah, he needed composure and power to beat Gigi Donnarumma. He had both.

PSG boss Luis Enrique had compared Liverpool’s front three to a trio of ‘fighter jets’ this week but this was more of a small-fry plane with propellers. Elliott cared little and gave flight to thoughts that European Cup No 7 could be heading to Anfield this season.

The youngster scored from the bench to steal a 1-0 win for the Reds, who were dominated

Elliott has found starts hard to come by under Arne Slot but made an impact from the bench

So, what has Elliott made of it all? ‘I’ve been through this before, the last seasons, a few seasons before,’ he said, talking to the English media deep in the bowels of the Parc des Princes. ‘There are periods of time where I want to be playing and it’s not happening.

‘But moments like this, it keeps me motivated and the hunger is still within me to go out and show what I can do. And influence the game as much as I can. I think not only myself, but any football player would want to play each and every game. It’s just not humanly possible.

‘Everyone is massive in this team. Whether you’ve played one game or every single game this season, everyone is going to get the opportunity and when it comes, you just need to be ready. There’s no “I” in team and we take that (mantra) everywhere we go.’

While speaking to us, Elliott’s phone is pinging with text after text from friends and family congratulating him. His dad was probably straight on the phone – he is Elliott’s harshest critic and life coach but even he might have given his son 100 per cent praise here.

Elliott missed nearly three months of action this season after suffering a broken foot on England Under 21 duty. It came at a gut-wrenching time for the midfielder, who talked in the summer about making this season his year.

In the Lincoln Financial Field, home of Super Bowl winners Philadelphia Eagles, Elliott brimmed with confidence and was all smiles ahead of proving to new manager Slot why he should build a team with him at the heart of it.

That injury certainly set him back somewhat, though when put to him, he dismissed the notion that the setback meant he was playing catch-up in terms of impressing Slot and the new-look coaching staff.

But if Slot lacked faith in Elliott before, his outlook may have changed now. Elliott has previously gone on record saying this is ‘my club’ and he is going to fight to prove his long-term future is at Liverpool and not elsewhere.

Though his future may be away from Liverpool, Elliott admitted moments like his winner on Wednesday are what keep him hungry

‘I’m still young, it’s a hard thing to understand in my head really,’ added Elliott last night. ‘I’ve already played 150 games for Liverpool and I feel like I’m very experienced in terms of that aspect.

‘So there are moments within the season where I am getting angry, I am getting frustrated because I want to play, but at the same time I need to respect the situation, I need to respect the manager’s decisions. Some games I’m needed, some games I’m not. That’s just how football is.

‘That’s why I feel like we’re in the position that we are in this season so far because of his decisions. 

‘Tonight was another one of them where it worked in our favour. Luckily I was the chosen one, you could say, to come in and get the match winner.

‘Opportunities like tonight, go out and take them and enjoy the moment because sometimes I have been frustrated. 

‘To get the winner is one thing, but especially on a Champions League night away from home, it’s a very special feeling for myself and my family. I need to enjoy it.’