Ten Hag confirms he has given up on Man Utd flop Antony

Updated: 16 Sept 2024 18:58 BST
3 min read

Erik ten Hag has made his thoughts on Manchester United flop Antony very clear.

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The Brazilian is at risk of becoming the worst signing in Premier League history. A €95 million acquisition in 2022, the 24-year-old has struggled to perform at Old Trafford.

An unspectacular first season was followed up with a dire sophomore campaign that saw the winger fail to notch a single goal contribution until January when he finally broke his duck against League Two outfit Newport.

Antony would finish the campaign with one Premier League goal and assist each to his name while recording just three goals and two assists in total across all competitions. Off the pitch, allegations of domestic abuse loomed large and are still being investigated.

Ten Hag on Antony

Towards the end of last season, reports started filtering through that Erik ten Hag had essentially given up on Antony and that Man Utd would be open to offloading him in the summer.

However, the window came and went and, with the exception of a Deadline Day approach from Real Betis, precious little in the way of concrete interest materialised.

Speaking to the media, the Brazilian acted bullish, insisting that people would finally see the best of him this season. However, Ten Hag has evidently not been convinced.

Antony did not start any of Man Utd's pre-season fixtures and, so far, he has only racked up one minute of competitive football this term, coming on as an 89th-minute substitute in a 2-1 loss to Brighton.

In his press conference ahead of Man Utd's League Cup fixture with League One side Barnsley, Ten Hag refused to reveal whether Antony would be in line for a start, instead hinting that he will struggle for minutes this year by essentially telling him the same thing he told Jadon Sancho before he was loaned to Chelsea.

"Tomorrow you will see what the line-up will be," Ten Hag said. "We have training every day and the players have to earn the right to play. When players are doing the right things in training, when the attitude is good and they show performance in training then they will earn the right to play."

Read more about: Premier League, Man Utd, Antony