Manchester United have confirmed an £85m deal has been agreed for Ajax winger Antony that stands to make the Brazilian the second most expensive player in the club’s history once all the finer details have been finalised.
Even before add-ons, Antony will cost marginally in excess of the £80m that United paid for Harry Maguire in 2019, with only £89m Paul Pogba commanding a higher fee.
Antony comes to United having worn Ajax’s number 11 shirt since the start of the 2021/22 season. Current occupant Mason Greenwood is still under investigation following his arrest on suspicion of rape, assault, sexual assault and threats to kill. Greenwood remains under contract but suspended until further notice and the club would have to strip him of the shirt for it to be available.
Antony has also worn 11 for Brazil at the 2020 Olympics and former club Sao Paulo.
Another jersey he has worn for both Ajax and Sao Paulo is 39, which is occupied at United by Scott McTominay, who remains at the club despite Premier League interest this summer.
Numbers that are available to Antony at United include 13, 15, 21, 24 and 30. Of those, fans might consider 15 or 21 to be the most ‘appropriate’ for a player in his position.
Listen now to 90min's Manchester United podcast, The Promised Land, with Scott Saunders & Rob Blanchette. In the latest edition they discuss the arrivals of Antony and Martin Dubravka, the possibility that Cristiano Ronaldo could still leave and whether a swap deal with Napoli for striker Victor Osimhen is on the cards. There is also reaction to Casemiro's debut.
There is also always the outside chance that Antony becomes the next player to take on United’s legendary number seven shirt, having worn it for Sao Paulo and Brazil U-23s – Cristiano Ronaldo is still looking to engineer a move away from Old Trafford before the transfer deadline.
Super-agent Jorge Mendes is exploring ways to get Ronaldo the move to a Champions League club he craves. Napoli and Sporting CP are the most recent sides to take interest after others like Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain considered and pulled out.
United don’t play again until transfer deadline day, by which time it will be known whether Ronaldo is genuinely in the process of leaving the club. If a deal is going through that day, the club could re-assign the number seven shirt to Antony, although it remains unlikely.
Previously vacant 6, 12, 14 and 18 shirts have been already taken on this summer by Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Casemiro.
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Source : 90min