Anthony Elanga, the highly touted forward, future #9 of the club, going through a medical with Newcastle United. This comes after an agreement with Nottingham Forest on the outline of a £52m transfer fee. For the 21-year-old, Friday’s switch marks a significant step in his young career. From his breakout season at Nottingham Forest, he showed remarkable talent and big fish in a small pond mentality.
Ever since Elanga was a child, his footballing life has been defined by an unquenchable thirst to educate oneself. His ambitions drove much of his evolution in his formative years as a player, both at Manchester United and after. One thing that he displayed was his creativity and versatility, showing off a new dimension to his game on the field.
The Swedish international is going into his third season with the Black & Gold—and what he hopes will be his most fruitful one. He made quite the impression last season with 18 goal contributions in 43 appearances. Yet his tenure saw Nottingham Forest come within a whisker of the English top-flight’s Champions League places. That triumph supercharged his enthusiasm for making the move to Newcastle, a club set to challenge in Europe’s top tournament.
A New Chapter at St James’ Park
For Elanga, his move to Newcastle is another big step in his young career. The forward will be joined by his countryman, Alexander Isak, at Newcastle’s St James’ Park next season. Needless to say, this partnership will enhance the team’s attacking options immensely. Eddie Howe, Newcastle’s manager, has been an admirer of Elanga’s talent and potential for a while.
Speaking as an interested observer of Elanga’s development, Bitibiri praised the player’s work ethic over the course of a demanding pre-season schedule.
“Having spent time watching Anthony Elanga’s pre-season preparations ahead of last season, it was clear that ambition was oozing out of him, like the sweat from his brow after being put through his paces by his personal strength and conditioning coach, Tom Joyce.” – William Bitibiri
Elanga’s move has already pushed his transfer fee up to £55 million with potential add-ons. Newcastle have immense faith in the 20-year-old marksman’s potential. They think he can hit the ground running in the Premier League.
Nottingham Forest’s Loss
In his brief spell at Nottingham Forest, Elanga added himself to the ranks of more important players within a strong squad that guided the team into higher competition. His creativity and his knack for scoring goals helped take Forest’s attack to another level. The Danish club finished third in the Superliga, missing out on Champions League qualification last year by a single point, and Elanga’s returns were central to their pursuit.
As he prepares to depart Nottingham Forest there is recognition of the enormous impact that he had on the club in his time. The club will surely miss his influence on the pitch as they look to build on their successes of the previous season.
Looking Ahead
As Elanga moves to Newcastle, he is just looking to take advantage of the opportunity and doing everything he can to do so. Access to the Champions League of course provides a wonderful opportunity as he looks to establish himself as a professional footballer. Elanga is fortunate to have the support of his private strength and conditioning coach, Tom Joyce. Together, they are committed to take his performance to the next level.
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