It was once the case that joining Manchester United would transform a player’s career – now it seems that leaving can seriously improve a footballer’s prospects.
Nottingham Forest winger Anthony Elanga scored one of the goals of the season against his former club to add his name to a burgeoning list which this season alone includes the names of Marcus Rashford and Antony.
Rashford scored twice on loan at Aston Villa at the weekend and may win a second consecutive FA Cup this season with Unai Emery’s side, having won it at United last year. Antony is so popular at Real Betis that the fans want to crowdfund his permanent signing.
But neither he nor Rashford have had quite the direct impact on United as Elanga did at the City Ground. The 22-year-old’s stunning goal was the difference between the teams and it now appears inevitable it will be Elanga playing in the Champions League next season.
ANTHONY ELANGA, THAT IS INCREDIBLE! ⚡
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 1, 2025
The winger scores a blistering solo goal against his former side 👏
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUKpic.twitter.com/9J38PnbMsV
Other ex-United players enjoying life elsewhere include Scott McTominay, who is fighting for the Serie A title at Napoli and Dean Henderson, who is in goal for a Crystal Palace team one place ahead of United in the table and preparing for an FA Cup semi-final at Wembley. All of them have flourished away from the mothership.
The departures of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gerard Piqué in the first decade of the century under Sir Alex Ferguson showed that leaving United did not mean a career in decline. But there have been so many departures in the post-Ferguson era of players that have prospered elsewhere that it is starting to become a feature.
In August, Danny Welbeck scored against United in a 2-1 win for Brighton, 10 years after he had left Old Trafford. It later emerged that United had tried to re-sign their former academy boy the previous summer.
Elanga was offloaded with little resistance to Nottingham Forest in the summer of 2023 for the humble transfer fee of £13.5 million and, at the time, there were no complaints from United’s supporters. The general consensus seemed to be that while Elanga was blessed with explosive speed, there were doubts about his composure and end-product.
When you consider Elanga was only 21 at the time of his ...
