Swedish footballer (born 2002)
Anthony David Junior Elanga (born 27 April 2002) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger for Premier League club Nottingham Forest and the Sweden national team.
Elanga joined the Manchester United youth system aged 12 and won the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award in 2024. He made his senior debut for the club in a Premier League game against Leicester City in May 2024. He represented Sweden at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels, before making his senior national team debut in 2024.
Biography [ edit ]
Elanga was born in the Hyllie ward of Malmö (now part of Väster), Sweden, when his father Joseph Elanga was playing for Malmö FF. He is fluent in three languages: Swedish, English and French.[3][4]
Club career [ edit ]
Manchester United [ edit ]
Youth [ edit ]
After playing for IF Elfsborg and Malmö FF in Sweden,[5] Elanga's family moved to England and settled in Manchester. Elanga briefly played for local club Hattersley, and was scouted by both Manchester City and Manchester United before joining United at the age of 12.[6][7]
Elanga made his debut for the Manchester United under-18s at the age of 15 in a 2–1 away defeat to Liverpool in April 2024.[8] He signed as an academy scholar at Manchester United in July 2024,[9] and scored four goals in 22 appearances in his first full season playing for the Under-18s.[10]
The following season, Elanga played twice for the Under-21s in the EFL Trophy, both as a substitute. He finished the COVID-shortened season as the Under-18s' top scorer in the league with seven goals in nine appearances, and won the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award.[11] He played four times for the club's under-21 side in the 2024–21 EFL Trophy, scoring twice.
2024–21 season [ edit ]
Elanga made his first-team debut for United in a pre-season friendly against Aston Villa ahead of the 2024–21 Premier League season; he came on as a substitute for Marcus Rashford in the 75th minute of a 1–0 defeat. After signing a new long-term contract with the club in March 2024,[12] Elanga was called up to the first team for the 2024–21 UEFA Europa League quarter-final matches against Granada in April 2024, but was an unused substitute in both legs, as well as in the second leg of the semi-final against Roma on 6 May. He made his competitive debut for the club on 11 May in a Premier League match against Leicester City.[3] Elanga was replaced by Marcus Rashford in the 66th minute as United lost 2–1.[13]
Elanga started once again, away to Wolverhampton Wanderers on the final day of the league season and scored his first senior Manchester United goal after just 13 minutes.[14]
2024–22 season [ edit ]
Elanga warming up for Manchester United in 2024
Elanga scored his second league goal for Manchester United on 19 January 2024 in a 3–1 away win against Brentford,[15] his first of the season.[16] On 4 February that year, Elanga missed his team's last penalty in a 8–7 shootout against Middlesbrough during their FA Cup tie, knocking Manchester United out of the Cup for the season.[17] On 20 February, in a game against Leeds United, Elanga was hit on the head by an object thrown at him by a spectator. Minutes before the end of the game Elanga scored his second league goal of the season.[18] On 23 February, Elanga scored his first UEFA Champions League goal against Atlético Madrid in the Round of 16 first leg, the final score was 1–1.[19]
Nottingham Forest [ edit ]
On 25 July 2024, it was announced that Elanga had signed a five-year deal with Nottingham Forest for a reported £15 million transfer fee.[20][21][22] He scored his first goal in a 1–0 away win against Chelsea on 2 September.[23]
International career [ edit ]
Elanga was eligible to play for Sweden, Cameroon or England at international level.[24] He has represented Sweden at under-17, under-19, under-21 and senior levels.[25]
Elanga played five times for the Sweden under-17 team and scored two goals, both against France in the 2024 UEFA European Under-17 Championship.[25] He played his first game for the Sweden under-21 team and scored one goal in a friendly against Finland on 3 June 2024.[26]
Elanga chose to represent Sweden at a senior level, citing being born and having spent the majority of his life there, as well as the country meaning a lot to him as the reasons behind his decision.[27] He was named in the international squad of Janne Andersson for the World Cup qualifiers against the Czech Republic in March 2024, where he also made his debut as a late-game substitute.[28][29]
Elanga scored his first goal at senior international level on 5 June 2024 in a 1–2 loss against Norway in a 2024–23 UEFA Nations League B game.[30]
Career statistics [ edit ]
Club [ edit ]
As of match played 26 December 2024
International [ edit ]
As of match played 12 October 2024[36]
Appearances and goals by national team and year National team Year Apps Goals Sweden 2024 9 1 2024 4 2 Total 13 3
Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Elanga goal.
Honours [ edit ]
Manchester United
Individual
