Gifted Liverpool star is earning an odd reputation and it's keeping him on the bench

Harvey Elliott is Liverpool's very own 'star boy' but the 21-year-old is developing an unwanted reputation for being better off the bench than from the start.

This season, the gifted midfielder has made 23 of his 45 appearances this season from the bench with Jurgen Klopp preferring to use his impact on play as a late sucker punch to opponents.

On Thursday, he started for Liverpool but was hooked at half-time after a mixed first-half, being replaced by Mohamed Salah.

Before he was replaced, Elliott hit the crossbar and then the post with a sweetly struck shot and also made one key pass, according to Sofascore.

Before he was replaced, he seemed to me to be one of the brightest players on the field and when he was replaced, Liverpool lacked the control in tight spaces of the final third.

It wasn't seen again very often in the second half.

Peter Crouch was thinking along the same lines, saying at halftime that Liverpool needed to feed the 21-year-old with the ball more.

“Get him the ball, he’s finding himself in lots of space on the right-hand side and he’s making things happen,” said the former Liverpool striker live on TNT Sports.

Overall, it was a disappointing evening for Elliott and Liverpool as they succumbed to a 3-0 defeat in the end

Worse yet, nobody can argue Liverpool deserved anything more.

You could actually argue that the Reds deserved to be entirely without a chance in this tie based on their shambolic efforts at Anfield.

Liverpool will now look to put the defeat and last weekend's 2-2 draw with Manchester United behind them when Crystal Palace visit Anfield on Sunday.