Anthony Elanga earns praise for ‘sharp’ Sweden display in new role that could help Newcastle United

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Newcastle United fans hoping to see the best from Anthony Elanga may have just found the perfect solution after what he did for Sweden.

Having signed for Newcastle for a fee of £55m in the summer, there was a great deal of expectation around Anthony Elanga for this season.

However, it’s safe to say Elanga has had a slow start at Newcastle, to put it nicely. He’s got just one goal, coming in the Champions League, and is now struggling to claim a place in Eddie Howe’s starting XI.

But, the tricky winger just put in a strong showing for Sweden during the international break, and it seems he may have discovered a new position to play in that could offer a breakthrough at club level.

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Swedish media and fans hail Anthony Elanga performance

Graham Potter’s first game in charge of Sweden ended in a huge defeat to Switzerland that leaves World Cup qualification hopes hanging in the balance for Elanga and co.

But, among the chaos of the 4-1 hammering, there were some bright sparks for Sweden, with Elanga’s performance on the left wing one of them, leaving many surprised that he did so well on the opposite side to his usual role.

In the player ratings from Swedish outlet Fotboll Skanalen, Elanga scored highly and had the following written about him: “It was mainly Elanga that Sweden wanted to use as a threat in the first half. Did well offensively and hit a nice cross for the equaliser. Delivered good service and was better offensively than defensively. Close to getting a goal, but disappeared in the second half.”

Meanwhile, Swedish fans were pleased with his efforts, with one supporter taking to Twitter/X to write, “Anthony Elanga looked seriously fired up in the first half,” and another adding, “Elanga looking sharp.”

His display even had some suggesting Potter should change formation moving forward, with one supporter posting: “Sweden should drop the gimmick and play that 4-4-2 with Elanga and Roony [Bardghji] at the wings.”

Newcastle fans had their say, too, and it sounds like they have two demands for Eddie Howe: to play Elanga on the left, and to get him taking free-kicks.

One wrote: “Elanga should be taking our free-kicks. Some of these he’s been putting in for Sweden are phenomenal.” Another said: “Anthony Elanga looking like the player we thought we were buying for Sweden… from the left. Not sure why we haven’t tried him there yet”

While it’s been said that Howe is protecting Elanga in the early days of his Newcastle career, perhaps it’s time for him to unleash the winger and let him flourish in a slightly different position.

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What Anthony Elanga said after the game

Speaking to Fotboll Skanalen after the game, Elanga was honest about his side’s display while looking at some positive elements.

He said: “It’s not nice. But we played a good first half. It’s hard to take anything positive from a 4-1 loss, but we have to do that. We’ve only been with Graham for four days and yet we were able to show what we did in the first half.

“All the players are positive even though we lost 4-1. We just have to take the positives, do better on Tuesday [against Slovenia] and then be ready for the play-offs in March.”

Elanga has spoken about momentum at Newcastle and how important that will be for him. He hasn’t found that yet, but it sounds like he is hoping this start for Sweden can be a launchpad.

“I felt really good. It was my first start in a long time in any competition,” he added. “I’m happy to start for the national team, it’s a great honour and Graham gives me the freedom to be a threat. I want the ball all the time.”