Anthony Elanga: Ralf Rangnick on what Manchester United players need to learn from ‘role model’ goal hero

Manchester United drew 1-1 with Atletico Madrid in their Champions League Round of 16 first leg at Metropolitano Stadium on Wednesday evening.

Anthony Elanga scored an 80th minute equaliser for the Red Devils after coming off the bench, slotting past Jan Oblak.

The 19-year-old’s goal and performance has been praised by fans, pundits and United interim manager Ralf Rangnick.

The latter expressed how other members of his squad should take Elanga as an example of a ‘role model’ following the forward’s performance in Madrid.

“He is playing as though it is a dream come true, it is a joy and fun to watch him play, I wish a few other players would take him as an example and as a role model,” Rangnick said on BT Sport after the game.

“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."

Speaking later in the press conference, Rangnick added: "Anthony, in all the games that he has played so far, just shows that he’s playing with all the passion, all the fun and all the joy.

"He’s just enjoying himself on the pitch and he’s fully aware of his strengths, his assets, his weapons. He’s always trying to play and show those weapons. This is what he did again today.

"Not only the goal he scored, he had two or three great runs and whenever he did that you could all of a sudden see that Atletico had problems with this kind of approach. But we have to show that on other positions as well, so not only with Anthony Elanga or one or two other players.

"We just have to play like that on every single position and if we want to proceed to the quarter-finals in a couple of weeks at Old Trafford, we have to play exactly like that."

The second leg of their Round of 16 clash will take place at Old Trafford on 15 March with the Red Devils hoping to progress to the quarter-finals of the competition.