Manchester United are trying to move away from excessive signings after an era defined by them.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, Manchester United’s transfer history has been a chequered one.
United have paid more than £70 million for a player five times, and Antony’s £80 million plus signing is second only behind Paul Pogba’s 2016 addition.
It is accurate to assess that over two seasons, Manchester United’s expectations for Antony have not yet been met.
Measured purely on goals and assists, the winger has 11 goals and five assists in 82 games. It is not the production United expected from such an expensive signing.
Nicolas Pepe on Antony
Former Arsenal winger Nicolas Pepe believes the issue with Antony is not simply the performances themselves, it is the expectations.
Manchester United paid a big fee for Antony which it is almost impossible to get away from.
Pepe can sympathise with this. Arsenal spent £72 million to sign him in 2019 and he could not provide a return which matched the fee.
He told BBC Sport: “If Arsenal bought me for £20m, maybe it’d be different. It’s not the player’s fault.
“They don’t ask for £100m or £90m. But that’s how it is in the football world and it’s something that people can’t understand.
“There are also players like [Mykhailo] Mudryk and Antony who don’t perform at their best all the time, and yet they’re not bad players.”
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Antony expected to stay
According to The Express, Arsenal received just £3 million from the sale of Nicolas Pepe last summer, a huge write-off considering the fee they paid.
Manchester United are not willing to accept such a low fee for Antony, who wants to stay and fight for his place.
Antony’s high wages combined with his originally high fee makes the Brazilian a difficult player to sell.
There is still a optimistic outlook that Antony still has more to offer. However, it will always be difficult to detach him from his price tag.
Even if United fans can set it to one side, the media are unlikely to forget it.
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