Ruben Amorim did not pull any punches when the topic of Anthony Elanga’s departure from Manchester United was brought up during his post-match media duties. He was not afraid to speak his mind.
Elanga scored the game-winning goal against his former club on Tuesday night, and Nottingham Forest, who are currently in the top spot in the Premier League, took a significant step towards qualifying for the Champions League with a 1-0 victory.
The 22-year-old player, who made the move from United to Forest in 2023 for a reported fee of £15 million, has been performing exceptionally well for Nuno Espírito Santo’s team this season, achieving seven goals and eight assists in the league.
A record that surpasses any wide player who has played at Old Trafford during that time period is the Swede’s 28 goal contributions during his two seasons with Forest. This record is the highest of any wide player who has ever played there.
During the press conference that took place after the game, Amorim was questioned about whether or not his team made a mistake by allowing the winger to leave at the time that they did. He did not hold back in his response to the question.
“We are talking about a lot of players who were at Manchester United and are doing well, but they had the opportunity to play here,” the coach said. You do not have the time to do that at United. To be honest, I won’t have the time. “We do not have much time to get it right,” he stated.
In this place, the pressure can sometimes be too much to bear. They were here. Sometimes you don’t have time, but you should make sure that these children have enough time to grow and develop.
Amorim continued by saying, “In order to accomplish that, you need a solid foundation.” Should you be unable to provide it, we will not be able to assist our children. Their opportunities were available to them, and the pressure that comes with playing for Manchester United can be quite intense at times.
One thing is certain: Elanga does not harbour any regrets about leaving his boyhood club in order to begin a new chapter in his life.
After making his debut with the senior team in May 2021, the winger only made 55 appearances during his time at Old Trafford playing a supporting role throughout his entire tenure there.
The previous year, he stated to The Athletic, “I made the right decision, one hundred percent.” “I have not really disclosed this information, but when I was at United, I was a very young player, and I was joining a team that was having a lot of trouble finding success.
It is true that there was a thought that went through my head, “I am playing for Manchester United.” Nevertheless, I never had the impression that I was getting better. There were times when I was given the opportunity to come off the bench, but I was just playing for the sake of playing.
“Coming to Forest was so big for me because suddenly I was regularly playing 90 minutes, while having the opportunity to improve,” Elanga explained further. When I was playing, I had the impression that I was playing for a reason; I felt like I was getting better as I went along. That would be the most significant change for me.
“Because I have been given the opportunity to learn, I now have the impression that I am completely familiar with the league. I am having a wonderful time playing football with this team, and I do not have any regrets about having joined them. We are currently in a very favourable position at the moment.
Ealnga was prevented from leaving United on loan by Ralf Rangnick, who took over as interim manager of United for the second half of the 2021/22 season after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer resigned from his position as manager to take over temporary duties.
In response to Elanga’s impressive performance, the German coach stated, “I must say that from the very first day from my very first training session, he showed up.” I had heard his name before, and I was sitting in my hotel room watching videos of him on YouTube. I thought that this young man was really impressive.
“He was on the verge of leaving on loan, and I told him that you will not leave on loan, and that you will say this here,” she said. He has grown as a result of his training.
During the evening of Tuesday, United suffered their thirteenth loss in the Premier League for the current season. They are currently in thirteenth place in the league, 33 points behind Liverpool, who are in first place.
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