Manchester United winger Anthony Elanga can’t hide his frustration after being benched for the Swedish national team.
As the Scandinavian side faced Serbia in the Nations League at the weekend, the 20-year-old started the match as a reserve, and was only brought on in the second half, when his team was already trailing 3-1.
Elanga was interviewed by the local media about the situation, and asked if he was disappointed, and he was very honest about that.
“100%. Any player who doesn’t start will be disappointed. But we can’t control that. It is up to the leaders to decide,” Elanga told Fotbollskanalen.
“We players have to focus on what we can do when we get the chance to get on the field. Everyone wants to start, but now I focus on hopefully getting to start on Tuesday. It’s a game we have to win.”
The Manchester United player was also asked if he received any explanations from Sweden manager Janne Anderson, but claimed there was no chat about it.
“No, no explanation. But I’m a footballer who has to focus on the next game, I can’t focus on the fact that I ended up on the bench.”
Elanga has seven appearances for Manchester United this season, mainly because of Anthony Martial’s injury. The Swedish player even had a few starts under Erik ten Hag, but following the arrival of Antony, he ended up being benched and saw the Brazilian starting against Arsenal and FC Sheriff.
With a tough competition to find a place at the Red Devils, it seems Elanga now also has a reason to worry about his spot for Sweden as well.
