For Harvey Elliott, every day is a dream.
Born and raised as a Liverpool fan, Elliott no longer has to watch his favourite side on TV every weekend. Anfield has been his home since 2019, when he swapped Fulham for his boyhood Reds after establishing himself as one of the brightest young talents in English football.
It’s the sort of bond between club and player that fans are desperate to see. They want their stars to care and few embody that passion quite like Elliott, who appreciates the reality in which he finds himself.
"It's more happiness and excitement, more than pressure," he tells 90min of the feeling of representing his boyhood side. “It's something I've been working towards since before my career, and when the opportunity came and I heard there was interest in me, it was just one of them where I wanted to take it with both my hands and make sure I make the full use of it. I'm loving it.
"When you step on the pitch, you need to do your job, but when you step off it, I'm still the happiest kid in the world playing for Liverpool. It's a win-win. Doing what I love, playing football, I can't wish for anything different."
Jurgen Klopp may not have been the manager in charge of Elliott’s beloved Liverpool growing up, but few bosses are as revered on Merseyside these days as the German, who helped drag the Reds to the top of the mountain after years lost in the wilderness.
"The first day I walked through the door, he kind of took me under his wing and would tell me things I needed to improve on, put an arm around me if I'd done something well, and gave me many, many opportunities," Elliott recalls. "That's the kind of manager and kind of person he is. He wants to give everyone the opportunity. At the end of the day, it's just down to you to take it, take those opportunities to keep in the team."
Elliott still remembers the early days of his Liverpool tenure. The 16-year-old waltzed into an Anfield dressing room already occupied by the likes of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Sadio Mane and was faced with the task of trying to prove he belonged.
Fast forward four years and Elliott, a Team New Balance Athlete, is a core part of Klopp’s squad. Those he looked up to are now colleagues working alongside him towards the common goal of delivering success to Liverpool.
"My confidence has grown," he adds. "Playing for the club I support, it was hard walking in the door the first couple of times, because I was thinking I didn't want to make a fool out of myself. I wanted everyone to like me, just trying to get myself at ease first before I was thinking about anything else.
"Now, I still have the fan in my mind, but it's my job. I'm here to play football, do what I can for the team and try and get results. I go into each and every training session, every game, and I need to keep doing it.
"It's hard to put a finger on [when he first felt part of the squad]. It still hasn't sunk in but I can't let it affect me. I need to go out there and do my job. When I come away from the pitch, or the stadium, I look back at the stadium every time I leave and it still brings me joy and happiness and excitement to go back to Anfield, the training ground, whatever."
That journey back to Anfield is one Elliott hopes to make time and time again until he finally hangs up his boots for good.
"I would love to [stay at Liverpool forever]," the midfielder admits unashamedly. "It's my place to be. It feels like my home now and I want to be here for the rest of my career."
WATCH 90MIN'S FULL INTERVIEW WITH HARVEY ELLIOTT BELOW
Harvey Elliott spoke exclusively to 90min at the launch of his own New Balance boots, inspired by his dog Paisley.
On-sale from 7th November at 09.00am GMT, the New Balance Tekela v4 Low, Paisley Edition will be available from selected retailers and online at www.newbalance.co.uk/football.
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This article was originally published on 90min as Harvey Elliott: Being at Liverpool still hasn't sunk in.