Liverpool’s smash and grab against Paris Saint Germain on Wednesday night has been the talk of the past 36 hours. Rightfully, much of that talk has focused on Alisson Becker’s Herculean performance. Delivering 9 saves – of which more than a few were of a high degree of difficulty – will earn you those plaudits.

But the other part of Liverpool’s win was secured through a goal by one Harvey Elliott. The Avatar was a late substitute, coming onto the pitch a mere 47 seconds prior to scoring the 87th minute stunner. And, perhaps most significantly, he’d come on to spell Mohamed Salah who’d struggled through a rare difficult night.

It was a massive moment for the boyhood Liverpool fan, whose own exponential trajectory had stalled a bit has he’s found himself on the fringe of Arne Slot’s Liverpool side. Massive and, hopefully, something that portends a bit of a shift in fortunes for the young player.

On Thursday, Elliott spoke to the official site about that special night.

“Nights like [PSG], I always want to play Champions League football. But for me it’s not about being frustrated so everyone can see, it’s just about making sure that I’m here and ready for the team. Although I played five minutes, I still had that mentality of wanting to help the team as much as possible. You never know what’s going to happen in football, you just need little moments and that’s when your confidence can become bigger and better.”

When asked about his hopes for the future, Elliott’s reply belies the kind of hard nosed, yet level-headed approach fans have come to love.

“Hopefully more and more opportunities come but it’s just down to me putting in the work at the training ground and working as hard as I can on the pitch to try to get as many opportunities as I can. The manager has his decisions, he has his tactics and you need to respect that as a player. We’re in a great position and I can’t really complain, to be honest.”

It’s hard not to see why he’d been so prized by Jurgen Klopp given such an even-keeled and mature outlook. The mental fortitude to carry through, despite shifting circumstances and while retaining confidence in your individual ability is what separates elite athletes from most of us.

It’s great to see a young player like Harvey be so resilient. Because it’s that resilience that allowed him to step up at such a crucial time, despite what many would feel is a challenging situation. Here’s hoping he’s able to kick-on from here and move towards asserting himself back into Slot’s plans.