Manchester United have made a whole host of poor recruitment calls in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, especially when it comes to filling wide attacking berths. The likes of Angel Di Maria, Memphis Depay and Alexis Sanchez all failed to justify their huge price tags, leaving the club with no choice but to accept significant losses on their initial investments.
Jadon Sancho is now following a similar path after his £72 million ($87m) move to Old Trafford from Borussia Dortmund in 2021, with a January exit on the cards after his public fallout with Erik ten Hag. But in United's defence, there was at least some logic to all of those moves, as they put their money behind players with either a wealth of experience at the highest level or those with potential to becoming leading talents of their generation.
Antony, however, did not fall into either of those brackets. The Brazilian joined Ajax from Sao Paulo for just £13m ($16m) in July 2020, and spent two years at the Johan Cruyff ArenA under Ten Hag before following the Dutchman to Old Trafford last summer.
Ajax made a huge profit on Antony, who ranked 19th for goals scored (18), seventh for assists (8) and 21st for chances created (75) in the Eredivisie across the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. United didn't just overpay for the winger, they had their pants pulled down in forking out £85m ($99m).
Antony hit the ground running in Manchester, becoming the first player to score in his first three Premier League games for United, but the glaring flaws in his game soon became apparent. The 23-year-old finished his first campaign with just eight goals to his name, and he's yet to score or register an assist in nine appearances this term.
There have been no clear signs of improvement in his game, with the Red Devils rarely carrying any real threat down the right flank when he is selected to start. It's clear already that Antony does not have what it takes to succeed at a club the size of United.
He is still under contract until 2027, but it would make no sense to let his stock keep plummeting. United must cut their losses on Antony at the earliest possible opportunity - on the back of his latest miserable showing in the Manchester Derby...