Man Utd readying fresh bid to agree deal for 22-goal/assist star - report
Manchester United remain interested in signing Ajax winger Antony, and are prepared to make a fresh transfer offer, Goal report.
The Red Devils have already signed Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez this summer. The latter arrived from Ajax after a prolonged round of negotiations.
It was initially suggested that Ajax would accept a fixed fee of €50 million for Martinez, but United ended up finalising a deal worth €65m including add-ons to sign the central defender.
Hence, Ajax are not expected to make it easy for them to land Antony, and Goal claim that they are reluctant to consider any offers less than €80 million for the Brazil international.
United’s initial proposal of €60m was rejected by Ajax earlier this month, but they are unwilling to give up. A fresh bid will reportedly be made, though it will be below Ajax’s price tag.
Man Utd’s pursuit of Antony could go down to the wire
United have landed their summer signings under the recommendation of Erik ten Hag. The hierarchy are likely to continue to back their manager, who is now eyeing a reunion with Antony.
As things stand, Ajax are firm on their valuation, and they are within their own rights to do so, given they have already lost five starting players including Martinez and Sebastien Haller.
Meanwhile, Antony’s former club Sao Paolo would be owed around 22.7 per cent on the profits accrued from his future departure. Ajax bought him for around €15m two years ago.
Hence, there are no surprises that the Dutch champions are holding out for a significant fee, and the onus is now on United to make a proposal closer to the price tag to persuade them.
After the long saga for Martinez, this is unlikely to be straightforward, and it could down to the wire. One advantage in United’s favour is that Ajax have already landed a successor.
The club’s technical director Gerry Hamstra confirmed earlier this week that Francisco Conceicao has been signed from Porto with the idea of replacing Antony at some point of time.
It remains to be seen whether United can get a deal over the line. Antony bagged 12 goals and 10 assists from 32 outings for Ajax last term before suffering a season-ending ankle injury.
The specialist left-footed right-winger has almost recovered from the setback, and United may probably assess his fitness over the coming weeks before making their improved bid.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
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