Cristiano Ronaldo has embraced his new role as one of Manchester United's leaders as he continues to mentor Anthony Elanga.
The Swedish youngster has enjoyed a breakout season at Old Trafford, the silver lining in what's been a disappointing campaign for the club. The 20-year-old is getting better game by game and looks to have an exciting future under Erik ten Hag.
Elanga revealed that Ronaldo has played an integral part in helping him develop this term as he regularly gives advice to him on how to keep improving as a player. He told Sky Sports : "I speak to Cristiano a lot in training and he's always giving me advice. I grew up watching him at Old Trafford, so now to be able to play together is just an amazing feeling."
It's a role that the Portugal star was hesitant to adopt at the start of the season but it seems he has finally leaned into it after being repeatedly urged by the dressing room and interim boss Ralf Rangnick. The groundwork was laid back in October when he intervened in then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's half-time team talk at home to Atalanta in the Champions League group stage when United were trailing 2-0 at the break.
Ronaldo made it clear to his teammates that the first half showing was not up to the required standard as he asked them 'Are you not ashamed?’, according to The Sun, as he tried to motivate his side ahead of the second period. It seemed to do the trick as the Red Devils completed a dramatic 3-2 comeback with Ronaldo scoring a stoppage-time winner.
In the wake of what happened, Man United players asked him to take up a 'bigger role' in the dressing room to strengthen the relationships between the players and the coaching staff. But the 37-year-old was happy for skipper Harry Maguire, who is typically the authoritative voice in the changing room, to continue being the central mouthpiece given the fact he had just returned to Old Trafford a few months prior to the incident.
As the season wore on, shouts for Ronaldo to take on a more authoritative role off the pitch would grow louder as Rangnick asked him to put his influence in the dressing room to good use by mentoring the young core at United amid reports that Ronaldo was going to take the captain's armband off Maguire due to his struggles this season.
It seems Ronaldo has finally obliged as he takes Elanga under his wing and United are reaping the rewards for it with the winger in excellent form during the second half of the season.
Elanga says Ronaldo is always talking to him, helping him improve. “You can see his record and the amount of goals he’s scored, I think it’s 100 in the Premier League now,” said the Swede. “He knows what it takes to get to the top so it’s more than just right to speak to someone like that. And, yeah, we have a chat the day before or even during a game. You might see us in the warm-up.
“He’ll speak to me and Sancho together about what we can do in the game to affect the game and it’s important to have someone like that in the team. He’s someone I look up to and speak to and ask for advice. He’s a special player to work with.”
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Elanga has bonded with Ronaldo as the pair set a new Premier League record for the biggest age difference between an assist maker and goal scorer, with 17 years between them, when he laid on one of his strikes for his hat-trick against Norwich.
Ronaldo even invited Elanga to join him in his trademark double ‘Siuu’ goal celebration. “That was an exciting time, the double ‘Siuu’,” he said. “I didn’t expect it. He said ‘let’s do it’ and I said ‘fair enough’, but if you see in the video, I didn’t really get in the air properly. I did it anyway and it was a special moment.”
Ronaldo has told Elanga to look for each other when either of them are making attacking runs into the box. “We speak before about how we’re going to work in terms of pressing,” he added. “If I get an opportunity, to look up, and if he gets an opportunity to look up for me as I’ll be in the box or he’ll be in the box. I’m really enjoying it.”
