Elanga an exciting addition for Newcastle

Newcastle United are set to complete the signing of Anthony Elanga this week, with the winger’s imminent arrival from Nottingham Forest providing a massive boost for the club.

The Magpies were rebuffed in their attempts to buy Elanga a year ago, but they have finally landed their man for a fee of £55m after a breakthrough in negotiations over the weekend.

The Sweden international could prove a very interesting asset for the 2025/26 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) campaign, which we’ll explore in this Moving Target report.

THE HISTORY + STATS

Elanga was born in Sweden in 2002, while his father was playing football for Malmo. After moving to England aged 12, he joined the Manchester United academy, where he came through the ranks and made his Premier League debut in Gameweek 37 of the 2020/21 season. He scored his first goal for the club on the last day of the campaign against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Elanga stood out for his electric pace and crossing ability and made 21 appearances the following season, producing two goals and three assists, but he fell out of favour under Erik ten Hag, and moved to newly promoted Nottingham Forest in July 2023, to answer the call of regular first-team football.

Elanga impressed on the wing for Forest during his debut campaign, scoring five goals and making nine assists. 2024/25 proved an even more productive season for the Swedish wide man, who justified Forest’s insistence on keeping him for another year, by racking up six goals and 11 assists, as they mounted the most unlikely of UEFA Champions League charges, which only faltered in the final weeks of the campaign.

Elanga terrorised defences with his pace on the right wing as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side deployed a 4-2-3-1 formation characterised by fast transitions and goals on the counter-attack. Chris Wood was the chief beneficiary of Elanga’s pinpoint crossing, scoring 20 goals as Forest threatened to challenge the established order for a top-four place, while Elanga’s standout moment came in February when he completed a hat-trick of assists in the 7-0 demolition of Brighton.

At the age of 23, Elanga, who has scored four goals in 22 appearances for Sweden, is only going to improve, which bodes very well for Newcastle fans, who will get to enjoy the best of him as he enters his peak years at St James’ Park.

THE UNDERLYING NUMBERS

Elanga had his best season to date last season and was a chief reason for Forest’s outstanding campaign.

The Swede was one of the best providers of goals, his 11 assists being beaten by only two players, Mohamed Salah and Jacob Murphy, the latter ironically the player whom Elanga has been recruited to replace on the right flank.

The other side of Elanga’s game that catches the eye, aside from his searing pace, is his ability to swing the ball into the penalty area. The winger produced no fewer than 185 crosses last term, a tally beaten by only two midfielders, Bryan Mbeumo and Bruno Fernandes (see below).

Chris Wood, who scored 20 goals for Forest last season, will certainly rue Elanga’s departure.

If we compare Elanga to his new team-mates at Newcastle who occupy the wide areas – Murphy, Harvey Barnes, or Anthony Gordon – none average more than 4.85 crosses per 90 minutes, while Elanga averages 6.65.

In terms of goal threat, however, Elanga’s average of 57.5 minutes per shot was less favorable compared to Barnes (29.0), Gordon (41.5) and Murphy (55.0).

WHERE DOES ELANGA FIT IN AT NEWCASTLE?

Eddie Howe has been looking for more pace in wide areas for some considerable time, but he has also been keen on a player who will not take time to bed in. In Elanga, he has landed a Premier League-ready player, who is fresh off a stellar season and young enough to improve further under his tutelage.

If Elanga thrived at Forest, who are not the most creative and attack-minded of teams, then imagine what damage he could do at Newcastle, who, nine times out of 10, adopt a front-footed approach.

With a midfield boasting two ball-winners with the passing calibre of Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali, Elanga will see much more of the ball than he has done in the last two seasons, and should prove even more effective in a black and white shirt.

Add to that the fact that he will be supplying the bullets for Alexander Isak, one of the most lethal marksmen in world football, and his end-product should increase further. Elanga knows Isak well from the national team and has spoken in the past of their on-pitch rapport.

“We have a good relationship and good chemistry when we play together,” said Elanga recently.

With Gordon tearing down the left, Isak up front and Elanga on the right of Howe’s 4-3-3 formation, Newcastle have perhaps the fastest front line in the Premier League. No longer will opposing defenders be able to double up on Gordon, with Elanga to worry about on the other flank. Indeed, in addition to creating goals, Elanga might find himself scoring a few more, too, as he gets on the end of Gordon’s devastating approach play.

MURPHY’S LAW

One side to Elanga’s arrival from an FPL perspective is the consequences it will have on Murphy’s output.

The Newcastle winger, who started last season priced at £5.5m, had the campaign of his life in 2024/25, producing eight goals, 13 assists and 159 FPL points – almost double his previous-best output. It would seem, however, that he will be the fall-guy when it comes to the pecking order, and so FPL managers may well have to look elsewhere for their next budget midfielder.

The other thing to bear in mind is that, unlike last season, Newcastle will be involved in Europe this time around, and the club will be desperate to reach the knockout stage of the Champions League as much for the financial rewards as the glory. Newcastle may be owned by a nation state, but they have been hamstrung by FFP regulations since their takeover. A long European campaign would help release them from their accounting straightjacket.

This means Newcastle will have to negotiate the twin demands of the Premier League and Champions League, which may compromise Elanga’s minutes. Newcastle still have a thin squad at present, and so the question is, will Elanga’s league minutes be impacted?

IS ELANGA WORTH BUYING IN FPL?

As ever, FPL managers are advised to follow the club’s pre-season matches to observe how they line up, and with two difficult opening assignments facing the Toon for the new campaign, against Aston Villa and Liverpool, it might be best to wait for Gameweek 3 before moving for Elanga.

By that time, the Sweden international should have hit his straps for the matches against Leeds United, Wolves, Bournemouth and Arsenal (Newcastle have a good home record against the Gunners). We’ll also know if Elanga is on set-pieces, a key factor in determining his FPL appeal.