There is a spectral quality about Tahith Chong’s Old Trafford return, a ghost of Erik Ten Hag’s past emerging through the mists with his sword raised and righteous anger in his eyes. At least that is how Netflix might present it.
Chong is an exemplar of the type, a promising youth who didn’t quite mature into a Manchester United dasher. Only a fraction of them do. The majority pass into the football ecosystem to make a career where they can.
Chong was among the early tranche of departures at the start of Ten Hag’s tenure, first to Birmingham for £4m 14 months ago and then to Luton last summer for a figure undisclosed. In total, seven academy graduates who were part of Ten Hag’s squad for the 2022 pre-season tour of the United States are no longer at Old Trafford. Anthony Elanga left for Nottingham Forest in the summer, Zidane Iqbal is at Utrecht, James Garner at Everton, Charlie Savage at Reading, Ethan Laird at Birmingham and Axel Tuanzebe at Ipswich.
Not many of those allowed to leave become a matter of regret for the mother club. It is perhaps sufficient that fellow graduates who were also on that 2022 pre-season trip, Marcus Rashford, Scott McTominay and Alejandro Garnacho have to a greater or lesser degree left an imprint. A fourth, Hannibal Mejbri, is striving to do so.
How far Chong might have travelled in a cherry red shirt would have been a moot point were his return to Old Trafford to have occurred at a time of plenty. Instead he arrives at a moment of deepening crisis, shining a mortifying light on Ten Hag’s big transfer play. And were Chong to reprise his scoring cameo against Liverpool to contribute to a Luton victory, Ten Hag would have to take a space walk to escape the noise, and even then wear cans.
Chong and fellow wide player Elanga, who had been at United since the age of nine, were jettisoned in favour of Antony, Ten Hag’s £86m toy from Ajax in whom so much of his United vision is invested. Antony is not the first Brazilian to disappoint in English football but in terms of return on investment he blows away his rivals.
Mirandinha set an unfortunate precedent at Newcastle 36 years ago. Old Trafford subsequently suffered Kleberson and Anderson in midfield before welcoming the erratic Fred. Robinho set a British transfer record in 2008 as the first marquee signing of Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi ownership. He was gone two years later. Chong’s return to Old Trafford serves not so much to elevate his own stock but to ridicule the idea that Antony is any kind of upgrade. The trade equates to a pound-for-pound earthquake.
Chong turns 24 next month. Though he played a full part at Birmingham, a St Andrew’s in turmoil did little to nourish his soul. He did, however, do enough to persuade Rob Edwards to take him. Edwards was vindicated by Chong’s first Premier League goal, one that had Luton on the cusp of a first win of the season at Kenilworth Road before the remarkable Luis Diaz rose to put his own stamp on the afternoon.
After starting in Luton’s opening four games in midfield, Chong has largely been used as an impact sub. His lithe silhouette does not bristle with physical menace. Rather the Dutch blade relies more on speed, touch and timing, which was very much the motif of Sunday’s stiletto strike, sprinting from the edge of his own box to beat Alisson to Issa Kabore’s cross.
The dynamism that drove him, the acceleration towards the Liverpool area were lethal demonstrations of the very qualities Edwards recognised when Chong was dreaming in Mancunian, and which stand in such vivid contrast to Antony’s jerky improv moves that tend to fizzle to nothing.
“I first crossed paths with him when I was at Wolves a few years ago and he was in Man Utd U23s. I’ve liked him from then,” Edwards explained at his unveiling. “He gives us some real quality with the ball, an end product. He’s at a good age and he’s going to keep improving. I think he’s coming into a good environment that’s going to help him do that, give him a platform that will help him take risks and be brave.”
Luton will need him to repeat the sequence with greater frequency to remain the right side of the relegation places. The way United’s anarchic season is unfolding, replete with bad luck, grave injuries and vindictive VAR, a Luton win led by Chong would be bang on message.
“We have a great bunch of lads, everyone was so welcoming straight away. Even the staff and the way they prepare us for the games has been brilliant. We’ve grown and improved every single game,” Chong said. “I’m massively proud of the team. The moment when I scored was amazing. I think it was deserved for the fans, the way that they supported us every week, even when results haven’t been coming our way.”
Ten Hag limps on, kept in his post by Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s delayed arrival as part owner. Whilst Ratcliffe is said to be sympathetic to Ten Hag and could, according to some reports, collect the keys as early as next week, the international break could yet take on a bloody dynamic were Luton to inflict a tenth defeat in 18 games on his new asset.
