Yorke says Elanga has a really good chance of making the grade long-term at United

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Anthony Elanga is currently getting his chance at Manchester United and is taking it.

He followed up a bright performance at Villa Park with a goal which broke the deadlock at Brentford on Wednesday night.

He is currently being preferred to players with bigger reputations, but still has work to do in order to make it at United longer term.

Former United forward Dwight Yorke has told the Athletic he thinks Elanga has a great chance of doing exactly that, having worked closely with him while he was doing his coaching badges at the club last year.

“I think he has a really good chance of making it,” Yorke said. “I was impressed by his attitude when I spent time with him. He was trying to be the best, he was willing to listen properly and he has plenty of speed.

“Anthony is a player who wants the ball at his feet. When you have his type of pace, he needs to also go long and then the ball can come to his feet. I spoke to him about this and I feel he’s added this to his game.

“I also told him not to get bogged down into trying to be the star man and explained that he had to work in different ways, including doing some of the ugly stuff in football which not every player likes to do — all that running off the ball.

“I explained to Anthony that if you have that persistence, you’ll end up getting your rewards in the long run.”

Elanga is flying at the moment and there is no reason for Rangnick to take him out of the team against West Ham this weekend.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gave Elanga a cameo in the EFL Cup meeting between the sides back in September, which went down well with some fans on Twitter.

Tomorrow, he should be centre stage as he seeks to build on his good form.

There will be peaks and setbacks if he is going to establish himself in the United first team squad but he is showing all the right skills and signs so far.

Yorke knows what it takes to make it as a forward at Old Trafford, and Elanga looks to have as good a chance as any of the generation coming through.

Ralf Rangnick has put his faith in him and it is being repaid at the moment, just when United needed it most.

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