Manchester United dealt transfer blow as club slap €100 million price tag on 22-year-old attacker: Reports

Manchester United have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Ajax winger Antony. According to De Telegraaf, the Amsterdam giants have increased their asking price for the Brazilian winger to €100 million.

Manchester United have been interested in Antony right from the start of the ongoing transfer window. The winger scored 12 times and gave 10 assists for the club in all competitions last season and has impressed since breaking into the first team as a 20-year-old.

Now 22, Antony wants to move to Old Trafford and has been pushing for a move. However, the Dutch club are not intent on selling him in the summer window.

Head coach Alfred Schreuder recently claimed that he did not believe Antony was going to be sold anytime soon:

“I really think he will stay. Of course, we have sold a lot of players now. That has not happened in recent years. We have also bought players. But we have sold so many players that I assume nobody will leave. I assume that no one is leaving. If we sell one more key player, it wouldn’t be good for us.”

To make the sale difficult, Ajax have reportedly increased their asking price from €80m to €100 million. The Brazilian has scored 22 goals and given 20 assists in 79 games across competitions till date for the club.

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Manchester United might struggle to land another attacker in the current window

A decision over Cristiano Ronaldo’s future seems to be imminent. The Portuguese is intent on leaving Manchester United and recently held talks with Erik ten Hag. Whether Ronaldo will stay is yet to be seen and is expected to have a big impact on United’s transfer plans in the current window.

While Antony has been consistently linked, the club may be forced to consider alternatives. The team needs to add a goalscorer or a winger who can effectively free up Marcus Rashford to play as a striker. Currently, only Anthony Martial and Ronaldo are the only two recognized strikers in the team.

Rashford was poor last season, while Martial has also not been in form for the longest time. Jadon Sancho has looked in prime form in the pre-season and can be expected to be a regular starter. Still, adding another goalscorer, regardless of Ronaldo’s situation, appears to be of paramount importance.

The club has undergone a number of changes recently and a plethora of players have already left this summer. The next few weeks might prove to be critical to any success that Manchester United can pull off under Ten Hag in the coming season.