Rio Ferdinand warned Michael Owen not to compare young star Anthony Elanga to any Manchester United legends, as the pair disagreed over the young star after his Champions League heroics in Madrid.
Elanga scored the all-important equaliser to earn the Red Devils a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their round-of-16 tie away to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.
And after the final whistle, the United academy graduate received an array of plaudits for his instant impact, having replaced a below-par Marcus Rashford just five minutes before slotting past Jan Oblak.
One of those was former Red Devils striker Owen, who raved about Elanga in his post-match analysis but admitted that the 19-year-old still has a way to go to replicate United's greats.
"He's made a difference when he's come on," Owen began, speaking on BT Sport. "If I saw him playing for any other team I'd say, 'yeah, this kid's got something and he's going to be a good player'.
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"But when I see them coming through Manchester United they have to be special, special. They have to be world class.
"Is Elanga and players like that going to take you to the league title or win the Champions League? Are they like Ryan Giggs or Wayne Rooney coming through?
"He's a very, very good player, but if I'm being brutally honest, if you're asking me what I think of him, I think he'll have a fantastic career, but he’ll do very, very well to be a Ryan Giggs or a Wayne Rooney.
"I know that's comparing [Elanga to some of the greats], but that's what Manchester United are. That's what they're aspiring to be, they were and they've got to get back to that.
"If you've not got that absolute freakish talent, you're not really going to be the right… We've just spoken about Marcus Rashford – he's a phenomenal player – he's got to find another level.
"Because at the minute they're not playing like they're going to win the Champions League or the league."
Former Old Trafford teammate Ferdinand was more low-key in his verdict however, adding: "What he [Elanga] brings is an energy, a desire, fearlessness.
"There's not enough in this Man United team at times. I think to expect to have a young player come through like a Rooney or a Ryan Giggs is blue-sky thinking, that's like generational-type stuff.
"I think Man United aren't in that place now. They need sound characters, sound people, honest, hard-working players who you can build around."
While the two pundits debated Elanga's future, interim manager Ralf Rangnick believes that more of his players should be following the youngster's lead.
"He is playing as though it is a dream come true, it is a joy and fun to watch him play," Rangnick stated. "I wish a few other players would take him as an example and as a role model.
"Football is an important sport, even more so for the supporters, and it is a ball game. This is what I wish us to do especially in the second leg."
