Manchester Under-23s coach Paul McShane believes Anthony Elanga has set the perfect example for any United youngster who has aspirations of making it as a regular first-team player.
Elanga, who joined United at the age of just 12-years-old, was embedded within the first-team squad as soon as Ralf Rangnick was appointed interim manager last November. The German was impressed with what he had seen from the youngster on the training ground and awarded him his first Premier League appearance of the season in his first game in charge against Crystal Palace.
That marked the beginning of a change in fortunes for the Sweden international, as he continued to be a regular fixture within Rangnick's plans. He ended the campaign with 27 first team appearances to his name, plus three goals.
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Rangnick installed huge levels of trust in the winger and it paid off, with Elanga producing several eye-catching performances. United's academy is awash with young talent, so several others will be looking to follow in Elanga's footsteps next season and beyond, especially as new manager Erik ten Hag is renowned for developing young players.
And for McShane, Elanga's story of forcing his way into the first-team picture and staying there should serve as motivation for those looking to replicate his achievement.
"It depends what they want to do," McShane told Off The Ball when asked if some of United's youngsters are ready to graduate to the first-team. "That is one of the things that I try to tell them, when you go up there you have to make an impact, you have to sort of leave your mark and I know Hannibal left his mark when he came on against Liverpool.
"They were some of the tricks of the trade maybe, the dark arts, but when they go training with the new first-team manager they have got to show that they want it. Sometimes I feel that young lads they go up to the first team and they can pass the ball, but they have got to show that real desire that they want to make an impression, and they are hungry to succeed.
"You see a great example of that this season is Anthony Elanga, he went up there and supposedly in training he was at it every single day. Then in games he was at it and he stayed there.
"You don't want to go up to the first team, have one or two training sessions and then come back down and sort of float in between in no man's land, you have got to go for it and make an impression, really try to impress the manager."
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