ANTHONY ELANGA scored a wondergoal against former club Manchester United as fans hailed it the “goal of the season” – but left viewers divided with his celebration.
The Nottingham Forest star, 22, gave his side the lead within five minutes with an outrageous solo effort.
ANTHONY ELANGA, THAT IS INCREDIBLE! ⚡
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 1, 2025
The winger scores a blistering solo goal against his former side 👏
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RexAnthony Elanga refused to celebrate wildly, despite the special nature of the goal, merely pointing to the sky[/caption]
GettyElanga picked the ball up in his own half, drove up the pitch and poked home[/caption]
ReutersFans were divided over Elanga’s muted celebration, as some called it ‘cold’ while others thought he should have gone bigger[/caption]
As the Midlanders cleared their lines from a corner, Elanga picked the ball up in his own half.
The Swedish international weaved his way through three Man Utd defenders and kept going all the way into United’s box.
He covered an incredible 85 metres in just nine seconds hitting around 21mph, keeping near-Olympic 100m pace, to catch United on their heels.
Micky van de Ven’s 23mph sprint remains the quickest by a Premier League star this season, with Matheus Nunes and Bryan Mbeumo hot on his heels – but Elanga’s feat is all the more impressive as hit top speed with the ball glued to his feet.
The speedster then poked the ball past Andre Onana – whom Forest had “taken the p*** out of in their matchday programme – to give his team the lead.
Elanga, showing respect for the club he joined aged 12, refused to celebrate.
But fans were more than happy to celebrate on his behalf.
One wrote on X: “Elanga just scored the goal of the season against United.”
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Another said: “Elanga becomes 2012 Messi.”
A third compared him to Liverpool’s leading man, writing: “Elanga wtf!! That was Salah’s standard.”
GettyElanga spent 11 years at Man Utd but was sold by Erik ten Hag in 2023[/caption]
However, some supporters were frustrated with Elanga’s celebration, pointing to the way he was treated by United, as he was shoved out the Old Trafford exit in 2023.
One pointed out: “Elanga celebrate man the deserve the rudest celebration for the way they treated you.”
But another countered: “Elanga that was some cold celebration.”
Another summarised: “Fair play to Elanga though. Outstanding goal and a very muted celebration. Showing his respect and class.”
Many Man Utd fans were left frustrated by their club’s treatment of the 21-cap international winger.
Elanga had shown great promise and had forced his way into the first-team, making 37 Premier League appearances in his final two seasons.
Yet, despite showing huge potential, Erik ten Hag sold him to Forest for just £15million.
Elanga has gone on to become a key cog in Champions League-chasing Forest’s XI, as well as Sweden, despite their wealth of attacking talent including Alexander Isak and Dejan Kulusevski.
The winger now has six goals and eight assists this season, with his new side third in the table and United enduring a miserable campaign, currently 13th.
What Man Utd said on hiring EACH of their post-Fergie managers
David Moyes
“All the skills needed to build on United’s phenomenal legacy.”
Louis van Gaal
“One of the outstanding managers in the game today.”
Jose Mourinho
“Quite simply the best manager in the game today.”
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
“A wealth of experience, with a desire to give young players their chance and a deep understanding of the culture of the club.”
Erik ten Hag
“One of the most exciting and successful coaches in Europe.”
Ruben Amorim
“One of the most exciting and highly rated young coaches in European football.”
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