Anthony Elanga has shed light on how his mentor Cristiano Ronaldo has helped his Manchester United development. Elanga is enjoying a breakthrough season at Old Trafford and the academy graduate marked his progression with a debut for Sweden on Thursday night.
Despite the high stakes involved, Elanga was summoned from the bench for the final five minutes of extra-time as Sweden took one step closer to World Cup qualification. An 110th-minute winner from Robin Quaison settled the scores to book a play-off showdown with Poland.
The winner of that game will progress to the 2022 finals in Qatar. And for Elanga, that match could present him with an opportunity to win his second cap after scoring eight goals in 20 appearances for United this campaign. But how much of an impact has Ronaldo had on him as a teammate?
READ MORE: Victor Lindelof sends message to Anthony Elanga after his Sweden debut
During an interview with United's official website Elanga said: "It's really good [to have Ronaldo as a mentor] because I go to training quite early and see him there. If we have had a game the day before, we speak about the game or training.
"He's a really good person to have around the building, not just because of what he does on the pitch, but what he does off the pitch as well. If we [young players] need any help we can speak to him — so he's a really good person to be around.
"Everything starts on the training pitch. Looking at what the oldest players do and taking notes from them. Training with them day-in, day-out, helps me a lot.
"Not just from a technical side of the game, but the tactical side of the game, what they do when out of possession. When I'm in the game, I like to talk to the older lads to get advice, so it helps me a lot."
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