- Red Devils closing in on deal
- Brazilian to be reunited with Ten Hag
- Hefty price tag to live up to
WHAT HAPPENED? That is a figure the Red Devils are preparing to splash out on the Ajax forward, with Erik ten Hag ready to be reunited with the Brazil international at Old Trafford. They believe value will be found in that agreement, but a former executive director at Sao Paulo doubts other Premier League heavyweights would have dug as deep.
WHAT THEY SAID: Alexandre Passaro, who saw Antony burst onto a senior stage in his homeland, has told BBC Sport of a big-money addition for United: "He's the kind of player that delivers what you need and gives you no trouble. It would obviously be highly unlikely that a team like Manchester City or Tottenham paid the same money for him, but Ten Hag knows what he's getting.
"It may seem like he's just a 22-year-old boy, that things are moving too fast for him and he doesn't have much experience. But I can tell you one thing: every coach that works with him doesn't want to let him go. It has happened with Ten Hag, but with other coaches in Brazil like Andre Jardine and Tite. They have a different perception of Antony because they know the phenomenon that he is in the daily work, the absurd things that he does with the ball, how talented he is.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: United have struggled to land a number of top targets during the summer transfer window, but persistence is paying off when it comes to Antony. He has netted 25 goals through 82 appearances for Ajax and won two Eredivisie titles while working under Ten Hag in Amsterdam.
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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR ANTONY? United will be in Premier League action against Leicester on Thursday – which is also transfer deadline day – before then playing host to old adversaries Arsenal on Sunday, meaning that Antony could be thrown in at the deep end on his debut.