Manchester United legend David Beckham shows Harvey Elliott the path to...

The times are rare when aspiring young people spend long periods of time in the Reds’ first team, which was previously loaned out.

Think of the players who made a lasting impression at Anfield during the Premier League era.

Robbie Fowler, Jamie Carragher, Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard to this day with Trent Alexander-Arnold and, Liverpool hopes, Curtis Jones.

None were loaned out, but continued their development at Melwood.

There were a few notable exceptions – Martin Kelly, Jay Spearing and Stephen Warnock, for example, had a few years as first-team regulars – but under Jurgen Klopp, at least, youth loans have usually only led to careers elsewhere.

No wonder then, just before Friday’s transfer date, there was a murmur of surprise that Harvey Elliott would be spending the rest of the season at Blackburn Rovers.

At first glance, moving is child’s play.

The arrival of Diogo Jota – and, more importantly, Xherdan Shaqiri’s decision to stay – has left Elliott, who was benched in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, barely a chance in the coming months Arsenal took a first-team action earlier this month.

However, the nagging doubts sparked by the previous Liverpool borrower’s trend should be alleviated by the 17-year-old’s strides.

First of all, Elliott made a Premier League debut before arriving in Liverpool, making him the youngest player to appear in competition in Fulham in April 2019, after having made the same in the League Cup earlier this season.

And he wasted little time with the Reds when he scored a goal on his U21 debut in the EFL Trophy and became the youngest player to start a first-team game for the club when he made his Carabao Cup debut against MK Dons and in the next round at home against Arsenal as the youngest player to start a game at Anfield.

Elliott became Liverpool’s youngest player in the FA Cup and the second youngest in the league. He also scored one goal and provided five assists in seven UEFA Youth League games. In the Premier League 2 he made regular contributions for the U23.

Similar to Curtis Jones, Elliott is already too good for the academy level. There would be little point in asking him to come out for the U23 this season in terms of his development, which is accelerated by regular actions in the championship.

Indeed, things did not go badly for another boy who, like Elliott, who played on the right flank, was the focus of attention from a young age, was from the South, made his way to a Northwest giant and agreed to a passing one Relocation to a former power station in Lancashire.

The player in question was David Beckham, who, after joining the Manchester United first team in the early 1990s, was very impressed during a brief stint at Preston North End before returning to Old Trafford. We all know what happened after that.

Moving to Blackburn means Elliott won’t be forced to pull up sticks and move elsewhere, reducing disruption and allowing him to focus on his football.

The proximity also means Liverpool can easily keep an eye on their progress. The Reds were impressed with how Blackburn boss Tony Mowbray helped develop former loaned teens.

Both Jurgen Klopp and assistant Pep Lijnders have not only expressed their admiration for Elliott, but also their absolute confidence that the teenager will be a huge hit in Liverpool.

There should be no concern about his loan move. Rather than worrying about the past, Elliott has long since proven that he can write his own story. An interesting campaign is waiting for you.