Erik ten Hag put his foot down ‘behind the scenes’ over the importance of one Manchester United star during his time at Old Trafford, according to reports.
The 54-year-old Dutchman permanently succeeded Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Manchester United manager in 2022 after arriving from Dutch side Ajax.
Erik ten Hag oversaw both the highs and lows during his reign at Old Trafford, including lifting the League Cup and the FA Cup trophy.
The former Ajax boss led United to third place in the Premier League in his debut season in England, but the Red Devils’ form fell off a cliff in the previous campaign.
Ten Hag finished the 2023-24 season by leading United to an eighth-place finish in the league table, with the Red Devils winning the FA Cup final in 2024.
The ex-United manager signed a new deal with the Premier League club last summer before he was sacked in 2024 after a poor start to the current season.
Ten Hag’s stance on Man Utd player
Erik ten Hag bowed out of Old Trafford last October and Ruben Amorim arrived from Sporting CP in November 2024 to replace him as Manchester United manager.
The former Ajax and United boss has been without a club since he was axed from Old Trafford, with Ten Hag’s reign ending in disappointing fashion.
The Daily Telegraph has now revealed that Ten Hag made his feelings clear on Antony and the importance of the player before United signed him from Ajax.
Antony had been linked with United when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge and the Red Devils dropped a hefty transfer fee to bring him to Old Trafford.
The 24-year-old Brazilian winger played under Ten Hag at Ajax and Antony cost United an initial eye-watering transfer fee of £82m in 2022.
Antony has failed to deliver on the massive price tag surrounding him and the former Ajax star has often been met with fierce criticism.
However, The Daily Telegraph reports that Ten Hag ‘stressed’ the importance of Antony ‘behind the scenes’ and he ‘favoured’ him for the ‘right flank’ as a winger.
The newspaper added the former United manager felt ‘no-one else within the squad’ was better suited for the role of the right winger ahead of Antony.
United agreed to sign Antony
Antony often left United fans frustrated for his lack of impact on the wing and the Brazil winger failed to live up to the high expectations placed on his shoulders.
Ten Hag’s desire to play Antony as his preferred winger came at the cost of Amad Diallo, Jadon Sancho and Alejandro Garnacho playing second fiddle to him at times.
Antony has been limited to 14 appearances for United in the current campaign and the Brazil international has only netted once for the Red Devils.
Fabrizio Romano on X, formerly Twitter, reported on Monday that the United winger is set to leave Old Trafford in January and sign for La Liga outfit Real Betis on loan.
According to The Telegraph, United ‘relented’ and made the decision to sign Antony from Ajax in 2022, despite previously valuing him at around £25m to £30m.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
