Anthony Elanga produced an impressive individual performance for Manchester United’s under-23s before picking up an injury.
Amid the pre-match disappointment of Amad Diallo not being involved, Elanga showed he should not be forgotten about.
Following a terrible start in which United conceded two soft, early goals, Elanga helped his team fight back and go in at the break level at 2-2.
The first goal saw him spring the Leicester counter-attack, latching onto a through ball from Hannibal Mejbri. He showed outstanding composure to shoot across the goalkeeper and into the bottom corner off the post.
He continued to ask questions of the Leicester defence, playing on the left wing with Joe Hugill leading the line up front. One of the joys of watching Elanga is that he is always comfortable in possession and never panics.
Elanga’s second goal was a sign of a real poacher. Right-back Harvey Neville crossed the ball in from out wide and Elanga raced in to beat the defenders to the ball and prod it into the net. Most left wingers would have been out wide waiting for the ball to come to them. Instead Elanga made a run and anticipated the cross.
Injury ruins his night
Unfortunately Elanga’s night ended early. He landed awkwardly in the 50th minute and had to be helped off the pitch.
The knock was described by MUTV’s commentators as a possible collarbone injury.
The worst case scenario for Elanga is that he now faces a few weeks on the sidelines. United took him off quickly as a precaution. With a bit of luck, he will make a speedy recovery.
United struggled without him. Elanga has a combination of pace and finishing ability which makes the team more threatening. United went on to lose the game 4-2.
It was a shame because Elanga would have been hoping to add a third and score his first under-23 hat-trick.
Elanga is 18 and is making good progress. He featured in United’s one first team pre-season game. His performances for the under-23s continue to be encouraging and we hope his injury is a short-term one.
Here is a look at how United fans reacted to Elanga’s performance…
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