Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag believes the addition of Antony will provide his side with greater depth as the Brazilian edges closer to an £85.51m transfer.
The Red Devils have reached an agreement with Ajax over the transfer of Antony, subject to a medical, player terms being finalised and international clearance. Although Ten Hag warned that the paperwork is yet to be completed, he did reveal that Antony’s arrival will help improve the attack as United prepare for a gruelling schedule.
“First, we have to sign him,” Ten Hag revealed in his pre-match press conference ahead of Thursday’s clash with Leicester. “So there’s an agreement between the clubs but the paperwork is not done so I can’t go too deep.
“Offensive department, we still need to strengthen our squad because we have many games to cover, from now we go three games a week, every third or fourth day.
“As you know, especially from offensive players, they fatigue quicker, they have to run more, higher intensity, we expect that from them. We don't only need quantity, we need quality."
United are set to play 19 games across all competitions before the beginning of the World Cup in November. Anthony Elanga and Jadon Sancho have occupied the wide positions in the early stages of Ten Hag’s reign, while Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are also capable of playing on the wing.
However, the arrival of Antony will provide United with a top quality option with their side set to be stretched in the coming weeks. Antony will be reunited with his former Ajax boss after scoring 24 goals and providing 22 assists across all competitions during his spell in Amsterdam.
The 22-year-old lifted two Dutch Eredivisie titles at the Johan Cruyff Arena and has also scored twice in nine caps for Brazil since making his international bow in October 2021.
