Krishnan Sreekumar
Manchester United youngster Anthony Elanga showers praise on teammate and club legend Cristiano Ronaldo
Speaking to the club’s official website, Manchester United starlet Anthony Elanga has opened up about his relationship with club legend Cristiano Ronaldo in the team, hailing the Portuguese star as a special player to work with.
Despite the massive age gap between them, the two players have combined well in attack to fire the side to a few goals this season. Ronaldo rejoined the club last summer from Juventus, while Elanga is enjoying a breakout season at Old Trafford.
Elanga was effusive about the respect for his teammate, saying that Ronaldo was available to speak to a younger player such as himself. The Swede said that given the Man United No.7’s record and the number of goals he has scored, it is more than right to speak to someone like that.
“You can see his record and the amount of goals he’s scored. He knows what it takes to get to the top so it’s more than right to just speak to someone like that. And yeah, we have a chat the day before or even during a game. You might see us in the warm-up.”
The Red Devils have not enjoyed a good season this time around, struggling to keep pace with the rest of the top teams and seeing them stuck in sixth position in the Premier League table. As things stand, they are in danger of missing out on qualifying for the Champions League next term.
“He is a special player to work with”
The lone bright spots during the campaign have been Ronaldo and Elanga in the outfield. While the former has continued his rich vein of goalscoring form, as usual, the latter has wowed fans with his direct approach to the game after breaking into the senior squad.
Elanga said that Ronaldo was a special player to work with, and was someone he could look up to and seek advice from. The 20-year-old also said that the veteran would speak to him and Sancho about things they could do in the game and how it is important to have someone like that in the team.
“He’ll speak to me and Sancho together about what we can do in the game, to affect the games – and it’s important to have someone like that in the team. He is someone I look up to and speak to and ask for advice and stuff. He is a special player to work with.”
Interim manager Ralf Rangnick’s tenure at the Theatre of Dreams may not be going to plan on the pitch, but Ronaldo and Elanga have provided moments to keep home supporters happy. Alongside Sancho in attack, the trio have been first-choice under Rangnick in 2022.
Elanga is enjoying the best campaign of his fledgling career yet, establishing himself in the first team and benching illustrious stars like Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford. He also made his international debut, representing the Swedish national team.
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Ronaldo meanwhile, has been the club’s single source of goals this term during his second spell in Manchester. The 37-year-old has stood out amongst other stars in the team, who sadly, have all been disappointing on the pitch and have not been able to support him ably.
Given how effective the partnership between Elanga and Ronaldo has been during the current campaign, it can only get better in the future- if the latter stays with us in the near future. With a new manager coming in during the summer, only time will tell if it will continue next term.
