Football365
·31 December 2023
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·31 December 2023
Anthony Elanga celebrates Nottingham Forest goal against his former side Manchester United
Anthony Elanga feels “the sky’s the limit” for him following his time at Manchester United, after a “personal” vendetta was settled when he “proved that” he could play at the top level by performing against them.
Elanga was given very few chances to succeed during his time at Old Trafford. After breaking through the academy, while the Swedish international made 55 senior appearances, those largely came from the bench.
He felt it was tough to get going, as even when he did perform, he’d be out the team the next week.
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“Last season wasn’t easy for me because I’d play five or 10 minutes, then I wouldn’t play for 10 games, I’d be in-and-out, in-and-out,” he told BBC Sport.
In the summer, Elanga was sold to Nottingham Forest for a fee in the region of £15million, and he’s thankful for the chance they’ve given him, as a good performance including an assist during a 2-1 win over United showed them what they are missing.
“I just stayed strong. I had my family supporting me, it’s been difficult when I hadn’t even been in the squad. This game was kind of personal for me because I wanted to prove that…listen I’m capable of playing at a high level,” Elanga said.
“I’m just grateful for Nottingham Forest for bringing me in. Before the game I tried to put my emotions aside and just stay as professional as I could. Today, not just me, but the whole team played really well.”
The winger has now been directly involved in 10 goals for Forest, more than he ever chipped in with at United, and feels he can go on to big things after leaving the club.
“That assist for Morgan was special because that puts me on double figures. Last year I don’t think I scored. Now I’m on four goals and six assists, I just want to keep pushing and working hard because I feel like the sky’s the limit.”
Richard Keys feels the sale of Elanga shows how poorly run United are at the moment, as Erik ten Hag chose to prioritise £86million man Antony – who’s yet to score or assist this season – over the Swede.