The £55million signing had endured a lengthy period waiting to demonstrate his attacking abilities at St James’ Park
Anthony Elanga of Newcastle United celebrates(Image: Iain Buist/Newcastle Chronicle)
Anthony Elanga has revealed his year-long search for his inaugural Newcastle United goal at St James’ Park – confessing he felt immense relief after breaking his duck this campaign.
The Swedish international sprinted down the right flank toward the Leazes End and calmly finished past Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson for his first goal on Tyneside during Sunday’s 2-2 stalemate with Liverpool.
This contrasted sharply with his Premier League debut in August 2025 when he had made a comparable run at Villa Park during a 0-0 draw but missed the target, triggering a seven-month dry spell before he eventually netted a consolation strike in a 5-1 aggregate loss to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
When questioned about ending his goal-less streak at St James’ Park, Elanga – who had displayed his sharp finishing for Sweden at the World Cup in America during the summer – stated that the feeling was one of pure relief after something he had wanted to achieve for ages.
He mentioned that he had been putting in significant effort for these opportunities, particularly through the summer and following the World Cup. He focused on improving his overall play and took full advantage of that work. He noted it was his first attempt in the match and something he had been eager to accomplish.
He observed that the entire squad delivered an excellent performance against Liverpool and if they could maintain that standard consistently, they were positioned for an outstanding campaign.
Newcastle had transferred £55m to Nottingham Forest for the Swedish winger the previous summer, yet he did not make an immediate impact and by the depths of winter on Tyneside, former manager Eddie Howe had urged supporters to demonstrate affection toward the former Manchester United player.
He now has the opportunity to impress Matthias Jaissle with the 24-year-old thriving under the German coach.
He stated that the manager had been excellent since his arrival. The tactical approach he has implemented, both in attacking and defensive situations, is evident to everyone.
He explained that the team commits fully when they attack and could have secured victory earlier given the numerous chances they generated. However, this was merely the opening match with 37 Premier League fixtures still ahead. He described the experience as enjoyable and expressed hope that spectators found it equally entertaining.
He mentioned that when playing, he feels in excellent form and that represents his desired state consistently. He thanked the manager and his coaching staff for instilling that confidence in him and the rest of the squad.
A stoppage time penalty awarded to Liverpool prevented Jaissle from securing a memorable opening day victory at St James’ Park.
Nevertheless, Elanga is already observing substantial improvement under the former Hoffenheim manager and observed that considering the coach had only been in position for three weeks, the team’s performance was highly encouraging. He stressed the importance of extracting the positives from this fixture and implementing them in the subsequent match.