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The futures of quite a few Manchester United stars recruited during the Erik ten Hag era are up in the air now that Ruben Amorim has come onboard.
The Portuguese wants the team to play in a different style and quite a few do not fit his demands with Antony being one of them.
Signed as a right-winger, his attacking exploits have been nothing to write home about and thus, the former Sporting Lisbon coach has tried him out at right wing-back during training.
But with Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui at the club, the former Ajax star’s chances of earning regular minutes in that position is not looking too bright.
Antony’s bleak future
The 24-year-old has already spoken to the club about his lack of minutes and he could seek an exit if there is no improvement in that aspect.
And according to Turkish outlet Aspor, Besiktas are ready to offer a short-term solution to the problem in January should the Red Devils accept.
Besiktas are ready to offer a loan deal for the Brazilian in the winter, akin to the deal they had tried to agree in the summer window. But with Ten Hag at the helm at that point in time, their request was turned down. The player is also eager to get the move done this time around.
“Beşiktaş’ transfer efforts are continuing at full speed. The Black-Whites, who are expected to make a winger transfer to their squad in January, have once again stepped in for Manchester United’s Brazilian star Antony, who was on their agenda at the beginning of the season but could not complete the transfer.
“It has been determined that the Eagle will make a loan offer in the interim transfer for the 24-year-old star, who is one of the names that the Red Devils’ Portuguese coach Ruben Amorim does not consider in the squad. It is stated that the right winger is also positive about leaving the team in order to play more.”
Besiktas eyeing Antony
Their chances have improved now that Amorim is here but INEOS might not agree to a straight loan and could try and include an obligation or option to buy, something Besiktas could struggle to afford.
The report also does not make clear how much of the winger’s wages they will foot and how much the 20-time English league champions have to take care of.
Even a loan exit for Antony would free up a lot of space on the wage bill for United with the Brazil international earning £200,000 per week (as per capology).
If he can shine in Istanbul, United could recoup a better fee from his eventual sale. But they are still likely to incur a major loss on their initial £86 million investment.