Man Utd open to loan offers for Anthony Elanga as clubs make contact

Manchester United are prepared to listen to loan offers for 20-year-old winger Anthony Elanga, 90min understands, with clubs across Europe already in touch with the Red Devils.

Elanga broke into the first-team under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at the end of the 2020/21 campaign and went on to make 27 appearances in all competitions last season.

The young Swede has made another 19 appearances so far in 2022/23 under new boss Erik ten Hag but has only started seven of those games amid stiff competition from the on-fire Marcus Rashford and £85m summer signing Antony on either wing.

There are no guarantees that Elanga will head out on loan before the January transfer deadline next week as United don’t want to leave themselves short of attacking depth. It is also vitally important to the club that any loan sanctioned for Elanga is the right one to aid his development.

But 90min understands that clubs in Germany, Italy and Spain have all contracted United so far this month, with Borussia Dortmund the highest profile team to do so. From the Premier League, Everton, Leicester and Southampton have also been in touch about the player.

Former United favourite Ruud van Nistelrooy, now in charge at PSV Eindhoven, is also keen.

United will not rush into any decision, nor will Elanga be forced to do anything. Crucially, Ten Hag sees a future for the 2019/20 Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year at Old Trafford.

“We have our ideas, for some players we are open for loans but with some players they are not, they have to develop first in our environment, second, we have many games to cover, and we need players to cover that,” Ten Hag said when asked about United’s many young talents on Friday.

Ten Hag has ruled out Facundo Pellistri leaving on loan this month, citing his appearance in the Carabao Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest as a signal of his immediate future.

In addition to loan interest in Elanga, a number of clubs are also keeping an eye on emerging United midfielder Zidane Iqbal. Championship promotion chasers Middlesbrough, where ex-United captain and assistant coach Michael Carrick is currently in charge, are among them.

When Ten Hag was asked about Iqbal specifically on Friday, he appeared to suggest that the 19-year-old will be listened to with regard to his own future.

“It's a little bit up to him,” the boss said. “I like him, but we have to work with it and see where his development can go. It's also about him to deserve his chance, take his chance. But when he wants a loan, we have to talk about that.”

On this edition of TPL, Scott Saunders & Rob Blanchette look back on Man Utd's win over Nottingham Forest in the EFL Cup, discuss Erik Ten Hag's Bruno Fernandes dilemma, Wout Weghorst, Marcus Rashford & more! If you can't see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!