Elanga, from rejected in the Second Division to United’s savior

Anthnoy Elanga is in the mouth of half of Europe after his goal at the Metropolitan. The 19-year-old Swedish striker jumped onto the field in the 75th minute and only five minutes later beat Oblak, embittering the Atléticos on Tuesday night. Three days earlier he had also scored against Leeds in the Premier League. After the match against Atlético, midfielder Nemanja Matic did not hesitate to declare that he “It’s the future of the club.” Elanga today is considered one of the rising stars of the moment. However, just a few months ago the story was not so pretty. Knowing that he was not going to have many opportunities to enjoy minutes under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, His agents began looking for teams in the Second Division of Spain in order to gain experience. However, after surveying most of the SmartBank League clubs, none considered him interesting, so he decided to start the season at United and wait for the winter market to search again for other output options.

The season started badly. Elanga was not called up for any of the first 14 Premier League games. However, the dismissal of Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick’s arrival on the bench at Old Trafford marked a radical change in his situation. The German coach made his debut on December 5 against Crystal Palace and in that game he already made his intentions with Elanga clear. He summoned him and made him jump onto the field in the 76th minute. As the games went by, Rangnick curbed his desire to go on loan in the winter, and in his place Martial, to Sevilla, and Amad Diallo, to Glasgow Rangers. Elanga has responded to the coach’s confidence with a great performance (eight goals and three assists), which has led him to win the renewal until 2026 and be one of the most beloved players of the United fans.

Elanga arrived in England at the age of twelveafter being born in a town near Malmoe (Sweden). He speaks four languages: English, Swedish, French and Spanish. His father, Joseph, came to play the 1998 World Cup with Cameroon.