It has been a struggle for Harvey Elliott on loan at Valencia so far this season, but the Liverpool star made sure to take full advantage of his first start for the club this week

Harvey Elliott has done his chances of reviving his loan spell at Valencia no harm after finally making his mark at the Spanish club.

It hasn’t gone to plan so far for the Liverpool star, who made the temporary move to the Mestalla during the summer after a nightmare year at Aston Villa. Up until last night, Elliott had not started a game for his new side, despite making seven appearances since the start of September.

And the writing looked as though it might be on the wall for him when he was left on the bench against Real Madrid at the weekend, having just returned from suspension.

With the focus turning to the international break this week, Elliott was finally handed his first start for the club on Tuesday, with Valencia taking on sixth tier side Tavernes in the first round of the Copa del Rey.

The La Liga side made no mistake as it cruised through with a 6-0 win, and Elliott was on the scoresheet as he took full advantage of his rare start.

The 23-year-old scored a superb free-kick just outside the penalty area, beating Tavernes goalkeeper Aranau Mainar low to his right to put Valencia 4-0 up midway through the first half, with an Aimar Blazquez double after the break completing the rout.

Elliott played the full 90 minutes, and in the process came close to matching his game time in La Liga so far this season, underlining just how much of a struggle it has been for him so far out in Spain.

Giving his thoughts on the game, Valencia boss Javier Aguirre said: “That’s what this game offered: minutes for the players who train every day but don’t get to play, even though they deserve to.

“Today was a good opportunity to see them in action, to watch them, and to observe how they perform both with and without the ball. That was my main priority for this match.”

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On Elliott’s performance, he added: “A good player can perform wherever you put him: As an attacking midfielder, or in a three-man midfield setup, or even in a more hybrid role, as he’s a versatile player.

“I believe he’s better closer to the penalty area, where he can deliver that final pass. He doesn’t quite feel at ease out wide; he’s much better centrally, where he can provide the final ball or take shots from distance.

“He does struggle a bit when he has to track back, but honestly, everyone just wants to play, wherever you put them, which is a good thing; it speaks well of the team’s spirit.”

Elliott will have to wait to see whether his goal will lead to more opportunities now, with Valencia not back in action until after the international break as it takes on Rayo Vallecano on November 21.