“Honestly, the timing felt right. I never like seeing academy lads leave the club, but Elanga wasn’t playing enough and he was always going to demand more.

As soon as a very decent transfer fee came in for him, it felt inevitable that he was going to depart. The talent is obviously there and I fully believe Elanga will be a huge success at Forest.

It will hurt seeing him succeed away from United, though we have to be happy and thankful for the service Elanga gave us”.