‘No defender can stop him,’ says Ten Hag in fierce defence of £86m Man Utd flop Antony but fans say ‘Sack. Him. Now’
ERIK TEN HAG has backed Antony to find form at Manchester United.
The £86million Brazilian flop, 24, is yet to score or assist in 20 Premier League appearances this season.
GettyAntony has been benched by Erik ten Hag of late[/caption]
GettyThe Man Utd boss has launched a defence of his £86million flop[/caption]
Ten Hag, 54, brought Antony to Old Trafford from former club Ajax in the summer of 2022.
The Dutchman has dropped him in recent weeks, however, with the winger having played just three minutes of the Red Devils’ last four Premier League games.
Asked about his misfiring big-money signing, Ten Hag said: “Antony: I backed him for a long time.
“I know his abilities and he has great abilities.
“When he plays like I know from the past he is unstoppable, no defender can stop him because he’s one of the quickest players in the first 10 yards.
“When he plays that game he will perform. I’m sure he will do for the future, I’m sure he is resilient, he is a character and he will fight back and I back him.
“He now has to wait for his chance and once he is there he has to pick up.”
Reacting to Ten Hag’s Antony comments, one fan wrote: “Sack. Him. Now.”
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While a second said: “He definitely sees things differently to the rest of us.”
A third even claimed: “I could mark him and I’m nearly 50.”
While another added: “He better be gone end of the season, league 2 player.”
Ten Hag handed academy graduate Omari Forson, 19, his first Premier League start last weekend, rather than bringing Antony back into the XI.
United’s subsequent 2-1 defeat to Fulham piled the pressure on their boss, with the result seeing them fall eight points off the top four.
On criticism from pundits, Ten Hag added: “First of all, some analysts are very objective in their comments.
“Very good advice, some are very subjective. Jamie Carragher from the first moment on has criticised and now he wants to make his point.
“Probably in the first half an hour, yeah, he had a point. Fulham in their midfield set up surprised us a little bit and then we have to find the solutions. After half an hour we found the solutions.”
Following United’s latest defeat, Carragher had said on Sky Sports: “When I think of this Manchester United team, they defend like a team I’ve never seen before.
“What I mean by that is they’re a team who like to press high with a deep block.
“It’s impossible. They’re trying to do two things at the same time. You can only do one or the other. We’re all pressing high or all defending deep, they’re trying to do both.”
The Red Devils return to action tomorrow night in the FA Cup, travelling south to face Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.
They will then make the short trip to the Etihad to play Manchester City on Sunday.
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