Jadon Sancho, a Manchester United teammate, is having additional difficulties due to Antony's strong play as he attempts to launch his career. After a sluggish start at Old Trafford, the Brazilian has found his groove for the Red Devils, and his stellar displays are discrediting England outcast Sancho.
Last weekend, Antony contributed a goal and an assist in a 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest. When Erik ten Hag's team was eliminated from the Europa League by struggling Spanish teams, the 23-year-old was one of the few players to emerge with any credit. Sevilla
Since his £73 million signing from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2021, Sancho has struggled to advance. The 23-year-old has been unable to recreate the prolific form that made him one of Europe's hottest talents during his time in Germany, despite taking time away from the first team to train alone and regain his confidence.
According to numerous sources, Sancho is one of a whopping 15 players vying for United's roster spots. Fans can rest easy knowing that £89 million summer acquisition Antony is not one of them and will succeed under Ten Hag in the long run.
United legend Paul Scholes said of Antony last week: "I think he is [getting better] yeah. Since that Everton game at home, he has become a different player... He could be a huge player for this club."
It stands in stark contrast to Scholes' assessment of Sancho. The former midfielder thought the winger embodied how poorly United played in their midweek 3-0 loss to Sevilla.
"We saw how hostile the crowd were before the game," Scholes told BT Sport. "Sevilla were so aggressive and you’ve got to give them credit. During the warm-ups we were eulogising about the crowd and saying how aggressive and hostile it was."
"When the United players see and hear that they need to go into the dressing room and think, ‘I need to be ready for this and my first touch has got to be ready’.
"You see Jadon Sancho in the first five minutes tonight, the ball bounced off him three times, [he had a] terrible weight of pass, too. I’m a big fan of the lad but you’ve got to liven up and be ready."
On Sunday, United might advance to their second season final. The FA Cup semifinal between Ten Hag's team and Brighton might result in a Manchester Derby matchup against City.
Meanwhile, Following another scouting trip to Italy this week, Manchester United appear to have intensified their efforts to recruit Napoli striker Victor Osimhen.
On Wednesday, Red Devils representatives were in Naples for the Serie A leaders' Champions League quarterfinal matchup against AC Milan.
Osimhen scored in the second leg, which resulted in a 1-1 tie, despite the fact that the hosts were eliminated from the competition 2-1 on the overall score. With that score, the season's total of 26 goals in 31 games was incredibly impressive.
The Nigerian player's current contract expires in roughly two years, although Napoli has not yet begun contract negotiations with him.
According to the Daily Star Sunday, United's continued pursuit of the productive forward may be to blame for the delay. Osimhen's form is still being actively watched by Erik ten Hag and his team, which suggests that they see him as a more viable target than Harry Kane.
The future of the England captain at Tottenham is still uncertain. However, as Daniel Levy is probably expected to demand more than £100 million for a player who turns 30 in July, signing Osimhen seems to make more sense.
The Napoli star, who has been connected to Chelsea and PSG as well, will probably cost more than £100 million in and of himself. However, given his young age of 24, he is a far more appealing target.
Osimhen has scored an astounding 92 goals in 183 club games during the course of his career. He has also scored 15 goals in 24 games for Nigeria.
It's obvious that Ten Hag wants that pure No. 9 with two wingers flanking link in his favored 4-2-1-3 configuration. He also has a physical presence that should translate well into English football. Given his lack of goals, the Dutchman has frequently used Wout Weghorst this season, perhaps just for tactical reasons.
However, if Osimhen were to enter the picture, Marcus Rashford would be able to move permanently to the left flank, competing for that position with Mason Greenwood, Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, and Antony on the right.
In other news, Sporting CP will reportedly be forced to sell highly-touted player Manuel Ugarte, giving Newcastle United and Manchester United a big advantage in their season-long efforts to bolster their midfield options.
According to a report in the Portuguese publication Leonino, Sporting will reportedly have "no other alternative" but to contemplate selling Ugarte during the summer transfer season due to their failure on two fronts in European competitions. Ruben Amorim's team slid into the Europa League after exiting the Champions League this season in the group stage and won an impressive two-legged match against current Premier League leaders Arsenal in the round of 16.
Their run came to an end, however, as a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their quarterfinal match against Serie A powerhouse Juventus on Thursday night was insufficient to overturn a first leg deficit. Sporting currently sits outside of the top three in the Primeira Liga with just three games left in the season, making it even less likely that they will qualify for the Champions League again next year.
According to the source, Uruguayan international Ugarte is "pole position" to be sold this summer to assist his team in avoiding the financial consequences of failing to qualify for European football's top division next season.
There have been discussions about a new contract that would have increased the hard-working midfielder's release clause from an estimated £52 million to around £70 million.
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