Erik ten Hag, the manager of Manchester United, expressed his strong support for Antony before Thursday's first leg of their Europa League quarterfinal matchup with Sevilla.
The Brazilian international made a successful transition to the club from Ajax last summer, making 33 appearances in all competitions while scoring seven goals.
Amazingly, the self-assured no. 21 has taken home four of the team's eight Goal of the Month honors thus far for his noteworthy goals in pivotal matches against Arsenal, Manchester City, Barcelona, and Real Betis.
Antony is a potent attacking weapon, as evidenced by Manchester United's victory against Everton on Saturday at Old Trafford, and the kid is motivated to perform at his peak during the final stretch.
The 23-year-old's skills are also more important than ever now that it has been revealed that our leading scorer Marcus Rashford will miss a few games due to the injury he suffered last time out.
When the manager was questioned about whether he expected more from the Brazilian and whether he was aiming to increase his goal count in the Premier League during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, the player responded fiercely.
"Of course, we expect from frontline players they are not only a threat but also that they have an effect in the final third,” Erik Ten Hag stated.
"He has to work on that of course. But he's a young player and I think when you see his record - you mentioned he is not scoring in the Premier League but he did score against Betis really important goal straight after half-time."
"He did score against Barcelona the winner. You can't say these are not big games."
"He did also score in cup games and if you can do it in such games you can also do it in Premier League games, so I don't have a concern about that. But like many more players from us, we have to step up and he has to step up as well. "
“We have to win games together and that is my experience with him. He is a fighter, he likes challenges and with him in the team, teams are winning. That is why I think he is in the Selecao [Brazil]. That is also why he is selected in the Selecao to play in the starting XI. He is still a very young player."
“He can kill opponents. We have seen on Saturday when the manager from Everton after half-time he brings another player because he is killing the left full-back.
“He is able to do it but also for him it counts, you have to do it every game because he is capable of doing it.”
Manchester United's injury update
Alejandro Garnacho, Luke Shaw, and Marcus Rashford will all be absent for the first leg of our UEFA Europa League match against Sevilla, according to Erik ten Hag.
The England international, who has scored 28 goals so far this season, will not miss the rest of the season as firstly feared, due to a muscle injury he suffered against Everton on Saturday, the club said on Wednesday morning.
Marcus Rashford will miss a few games after being evaluated, but he will play again in the remaining games of the season because United is still engaged in three different competitions.
Several injured United players have returned to the team in recent weeks, but Garnacho and Shaw won't be ready for the Andalusian team's visit.
“No, [they are] both not available,” Ten Hag replied to reporters when asked about the pair’s availability during Wednesday’s press conference."
“Definitely the injury of Garnacho is more severe, is more strong, but Luke Shaw I expect him back at short notice, yes.”
Marcus Rashford is reportedly "disappointed" but "not broken" by the injury that will keep him out of Manchester United's upcoming matches according to the team manager."
"Of course it is a setback and he is disappointed about it but he is not totally broken because he knows he will return quickly."
"He is optimistic and he has started straight on his recovery and his rehab. That helps him to get back soon," Erik Ten Hag emphasized.
A more positive development is that Casemiro is available, while Christian Eriksen and Anthony Martial are vying for their first starts since January as they improve their match fitness.
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