Leeds United's Pascal Struijk opens up on Harvey Elliott's return for Liverpool after horror injury

The teenager spent almost five months out with a fracture and dislocation of the ankle, sustained in a challenge by Struijk back in September.

Struijk won the ball in the contest but his trailing leg trapped Harvey's ankle and left the Reds prospect writhing in agony on the pitch, prompting the Liverpool medical staff to run on even before referee Craig Pawson blew the whistle to stop play.

Pawson belatedly sent Struijk off for the challenge and despite Leeds' appeal, the three-game suspension was upheld by an FA panel, albeit via a majority decision and not a unanimous one. Elliott required surgery and has spent months rehabbing.

Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa was keen to make clear that there was no malice in Struijk's challenge, which was a common one seen often in games, and lauded Elliott for taking the heat off the Whites defender with his gracious comments on social media. Elliott disagreed with Struijk's punishment and the two have been in contact as the 18-year-old has completed his comeback.

He played just over half an hour in the FA Cup win over Cardiff City, scoring on his return, and also featured in the Premier League victory over Leicester City.

"I'm really pleased and I'm really happy for him that he's back," Struijk told BBC Leeds."His recovery has been quite quick. I've kept in touch with him, straight after the moment and then a couple times when I saw him improving, going onto the pitch the first time. It's been really good, I'm really pleased to see him and the contact we've had is good."

Struijk, one of the quieter, more reserved members of Bielsa's squad, says he had to block out the external noise after the incident, which was debated at length in the media and by supporters of both clubs.

"It was a bit crazy, a bit hectic after the game," he said.

"I just blocked myself out from what was happening around it and focused on the people close to me. It blows by. Something else happens and then people will focus on that. We're not always stuck on what happened yesterday, life continues and that's what happened."

Elliott was overjoyed to mark his comeback against Cardiff with a goal and admitted it was an emotional moment when he came off the bench to replace Naby Keita.

“It’s a dream come true. To come back from a horrible injury like that in quick time and to come here and score in front of the fans, I’m just buzzing,” he told liverpoolfc.com.

“When I came on as a sub, it did bring a little tear to my eye. It was a moment I’ll remember and a moment that I can learn from in the future and look back on it and think, ‘If I can go through it at such a young age, I can go through anything’."