Thomas Hein
Anthony Elanga has earned the trust of Ralf Rangnick at Manchester United as the Swedish player has earned considerable playing time in the second half of the campaign. Elanga has proven to be a solid player for Rangnick in the final third, using his pace and skill to great effect.
United will need him to continue to operate at a high level in their bid to qualify for a Champions League place next season. The Red Devils are currently backed at 11/2 in the Premier League betting odds to finish in the top four and will need great effort in the stretch run of the campaign to beat out Arsenal and Tottenham for the final Champions League spot. As a result, there is pressure on Elanga, along with his teammates, to perform. However, it is not the first time United have asked a lot of a fledgling player and it has eventually come back to haunt them.
The 19-year-old made his bow under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the 2020/21 season and made an impact in only his second start by scoring his first Premier League goal in a 2-1 win over Wolves on the final day of the campaign.
Due to the intense competition for places in the final third, following the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo, Elanga found opportunities limited at the start of the 2021/22 season. However, United was patient with his development and opted not to send Elanga out on loan, despite featuring only once in the first five months of the term.
Once Rangnick was hired to replace Solskjaer, Elanga was presented with a chance to earn regular playing time and has proven himself as a fine complement to Ronaldo. He has endured his fair share of highs and lows: he missed the decisive penalty against Middlesbrough in the third round of the FA Cup, which stung. However, he also spurned a decent opening against Atletico Madrid in the opening minutes of United’s defeat in the Champions League Round of 16, second-leg clash at Old Trafford.
A bird's-eye view of Anthony Elanga's goal vs Atletico last night 😍
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 24, 2022
A wonderfully crafted Man Utd move! 👏#UCL pic.twitter.com/rFydsaIBcV
There have also been moments of brilliance, notching a fine goal against Brentford and scoring United’s equaliser against Atletico at the Wanda Metropolitano in the first leg. Rangnick will require more creativity from Elanga in the final third as he continues to develop as he has yet to provide for his teammates this term. But, United should not be pressing the Swede to do too much as they did with Marcus Rashford.
As a fledgling player, Rashford could do no wrong in front of goal as he burst onto the scene in the 2015/16 season with a flurry of crucial strikes in the Europa League and Premier League. He developed his skills in front of goals and appeared to be on the path to stardom after notching 22 goals in the 2019/20 campaign competitions.
However, Rashford has since hit the wall and has suffered a significant decline in form. It has not been helped by niggling injuries and being shunted around all three positions in the final third. The changeover in the dugout has also been a problem as managers have required different demands of the forward. He is now at a crux point of his career, and there have been reports suggesting that he could leave Old Trafford, which would have been unthinkable two years ago.
Rashford’s story is a case and point of how careful United need to be with Elanga as he continues to grow into what the club will hope is an outstanding talent.
