Manchester United possess a host of young academy stars who are on the brink of breaking into the senior squad at the same time.
At the back end of last season Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was able to get the likes of Shola Shoretire, Hannibal Mejbri, Anthony Elanga, Amad and even Will Fish involved in first-team fixtures as they finished as runners-up in both the Premier League and Europa League.
Add to those names during this pre-season campaign James Garner, Dylan Levitt, Ethan Galbraith, Teden Mengi, Di’Shon Bernard and Facundo Pellistri and Solskjaer has got a phenomenal pool of talent to choose from for his squad.
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But the one name who has taken the opportunity more than any other since their inclusion to the first-team fold is their 19-year-old Swedish forward.
After starting against Leicester in the Premier League defeat that handed Man City the title when United faced three games in five days, Elanga was rewarded with another start in the final game against Wolves.
Starting on the right-hand side, Elanga got himself on the scoresheet with a bullet header from a wicked Daniel James cross in a 2-1 win. But what many have likely forgotten is that Elanga got the nod in those games partly because Hannibal was ruled out with injury during that period.
The Tunisian international made his debut as a substitute in the game but didn’t really have enough time to influence proceedings in the way he would have liked.
As pre-season began, Hannibal was once again missing initially after representing his country during the summer, meaning he was allowed to return slightly later than the rest of the group.
In the first friendly of the summer against Derby, Elanga was bright in the first 45 minutes before coming off as part of the wholesale changes at half-time. He used his pace and intelligent movement in behind to cause the Rams backline plenty of problems before getting more minutes against QPR.
Coming on at half-time, he missed a big chance before watching the team go 4-1 down. But he persisted with excellent movement in behind and was a threat throughout, before being rewarded with a great goal late on as he placed a left-footed shot into the corner.
Anthony Elanga scores against Brentford
He subsequently started the most recent game against Brentford at Old Trafford, in front of his home fans for the first time, and was electric once again. He got himself on the scoresheet with a wonderful volley early in the first half, interchanging well with Mason Greenwood and company.
He’s given Solskjaer a mild headache, something the manager has admitted himself is a good thing and the club still have to decide whether or not he will go out on loan.
At the start of the summer there wasn’t really a discussion to be had on the matter. He’d play some minutes then head out on loan for regular first-team football somewhere else, but now he could be a wildcard for the first team.
His performances in pre-season have seen him leapfrog some of his fellow academy graduates in the running and fans are now excited to see his development with the club.
With Marcus Rashford confirmed to be missing until around October due to shoulder surgery, United’s attacking options are still strong but there is space for a youngster or two.
Between Elanga, Amad, Hannibal and Shoretire, it’s the Swede that has shown the most promise in his first-team outings so far – and he may have just unknowingly nudged one of his academy friends towards the loan exit in his place for the upcoming campaign.
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