£48,000-a-week Nottingham Forest star who had 18 touches vs Arsenal gives Nuno big conundrum - opinion
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Nottingham Forest lost 3-0 at Arsenal, conceding three goals for the second Premier League game in succession.
The Reds couldn’t bounce back from a 3-1 defeat to Newcastle prior to the international break and Nuno Espirito Santo must now rediscover a winning formula.
There were a number of pretty poor performances from a Forest perspective at the Emirates Stadium at the weekend.
James Ward-Prowse was slammed by Forest fans after his first start in six weeks but he wasn’t alone with a below-par performance.
Espirito Santo has confirmed that training will be defence-orientated this week and Forest have to go back to being solid at the back.
There are a few concerns developing for the Forest head coach and one player must be giving him sleepless nights at the moment.
Anthony Elanga is providing a huge conundrum for Forest boss Espirito Santo
In the summer of 2023, Forest paid £15 million to sign Elanga from Manchester United and he repaid the faith shown in him.
During 2023/24, Elanga scored five goals and claimed nine assists, showcasing quality form on the right-hand side for Forest.
In the summer, Newcastle made an offer for Elanga and since then he’s struggled to recreate the form which he showcased last season.
Against Arsenal, Elanga was forced off with injury at half-time, with Espirito Santo confirming that he was in some discomfort.
Sofa Score showcased that he might have been worth bringing off at the interval anyway – such was the level of his performance.
He gave possession away five times during his 45-minute outing, whilst he failed to complete one successful dribble and had just 18 touches of the ball.
Elanga is a trier. He’s a popular member of the dressing room and ultimately, as a 22-year-old there will be a case of peaks and troughs.
Against West Ham, he was responsible for getting Edson Alvarez sent off and a week later against Newcastle he registered his maiden assist this season.
Competition for places has piled the pressure on Elanga
This season’s squad is the strongest that Forest have had since returning to the Premier League in 2022.
As a result, the competition for places is extremely strong and that is giving Espirito Santo a conundrum of sorts with the £48,000-a-week Elanga.
Last season, the player was given the chance to get a run of games under his belt with very little in the way of competition from the bench.
Fast forward 12 months, however, and Jota Silva and Ramon Sosa are both waiting patiently to prove themselves from the start of games.
Very few fans are actually suggesting Elanga isn’t very good and if they are then frankly, they’re wrong.
However, it’s concerning that the goals and assists look to have dried up and Espirito Santo has to work on a plan to make him more effective as the season progresses.
