Credit: Imago

Evan Lloyd

Wed 1 April 2026 8:52, UK

Follow us on Google Discover

Anthony Elanga made himself a very popular man away from Newcastle United on Tuesday when he scored as Sweden beat Poland 3-2 to qualify for the World Cup.

Goals from the winger, Gustaf Lagerbielke and Viktor Gyokeres saw Graham Potter’s side book their tickets to North America, cancelling out goals from Nicola Zalewski and Karol Swiderski.

Elanga’s goal came after just 20 minutes and was arguably the best finish on the night, the 23-year-old emphatically firing in off the bar after he was found by Yasin Ayari’s lay off.

The Swedes will now take their place in World Cup group F, alongside the Netherlands, Japan and Tunisia.

Elanga’s performance will give hope that his Newcastle form can improve, with the winger having scored just three goals in 44 appearances across all competitions this season.

Swedish media hail Anthony Elanga

Elanga has been slammed on several occasions this season, amid his failures to justify the £55million fee Newcastle spent to sign him last summer.

The 23-year-old enjoyed a superb season at Nottingham Forest, but has failed to find any semblance of consistent form at St James’ Park.

Eddie Howe will hope that Tuesday’s moment can provide an injection of confidence for his forward, however.

Elanga’s impact was largely constricted to two moments, but they will go down as big, big moments in Sweden.

The first, the winger’s goal, was a devastating finish that flew past Kamil Grabara, leaving the Poland goalkeeper to flap at air.

And his second, while not a direct contribution, was also key, with Elanga drawing a foul from Jakub Kiwior and winning a free-kick, which was subsequently headed in by Lagerbielke.

Swedish outlet Fotbollskanalen said the forward was “good”, and wrote: “Gave Sweden a dream start and made it 1-0 after a fantastic finish. Had a hard time getting it going after that. Came off after 68 minutes.”

With a similar verdict, SvenskaFans gave the Newcastle man a 3/5, and wrote: “Shot an untouchable and fantastic shot that gave Sweden a 1-0 lead.

“Stressed the opponents a lot and was active. Sometimes a little careless, but looked for the ball an incredible number of times.”

Eddie Howe can take a note from Graham Potter

Potter was sacked by West Ham at the start of the season, but Tuesday’s scenes show that he clearly made the right choice by managing Sweden.

The former Brighton and Chelsea manager has managed to guide his players to a level many of them have not even reached for their clubs this season.

One of those players is Elanga, and Howe can take notice from the way Potter elected to use him.

The winger has largely been tied to the right wing for Newcastle this season, but for Sweden, he plays in a more central position to get him closer to the goal.

Howe has been hesitant to change things this season, but Elanga’s big moment should have him paying serious attention.