For the last 48 hours or so, various reports indicated that Ajax have rejected Manchester United’s €80m bid for Antony.
The winger has told De Telegraaf he cannot assure the club’s supporters he will still be in Amsterdam beyond the summer window.
Algemeen Dagblad have warned the Eredivisie winners they must ‘still fear’ losing the 22-year-old, even after rejecting an €80m offer from Manchester United.
Antony, for his part, has ‘set his sights’ on the transfer to Old Trafford as this deal can ‘ensure a carefree future for himself and his family’. He missed yesterday’s training and it needs to be seen whether he’ll be on the pitch for Ajax’s clash against Sparta Rotterdam on Sunday.
Ajax initially set a €80m price tag for the Brazil international, but AD say that is no longer valid at this stage of the transfer window. They are reluctant to part ways with their star.
Therefore, it’s not surprising the Dutch champions turned down Manchester United’s offer. If the South American has to leave, then it will be for an amount that exceeds what Barcelona paid [€85m including bonuses] for Frenkie de Jong in 2019.
Erik ten Hag’s side improved their offer to take Lisandro Martínez away from Ajax and it needs to be seen whether they will repeat the same to sign Antony.
AD suggest Manchester United are reluctant and are considering other options. Among them is PSV Eindhoven’s Cody Gakpo and there is a ‘real chance’ he is their ‘plan B’, if the Antony deal doesn’t take shape.
The Dutchman has the same agent as Ten Hag and it may make it easier for the Red Devils to carry out the operation.
With the threat of Manchester United looming over both Ajax and PSV, AD claim the Red Devils signing either Antony or Gakpo could have an impact on the Dutch title race.
