Man Utd: Erik ten Hag says Antony improved SIX aspects of his game after half-time in Betis win
‘Be braver!’: Erik ten Hag says Antony improved SIX aspects of his game after halftime in Man Utd’s comeback win against Real Betis…
- Antony came on the scoreboard after half time as his performance improved.
- But Erik ten Hag was full of suggested improvements for the Brazilian winger.
- Manger has previously said his third-highest transfer record “keeps growing”
Antony may have put his name on Manchester United’s scoresheet for the Europa League first leg against Real Betis, but manager Erik ten Hag still believes there is room for improvement in the Brazilian player’s game.
The Red Devils were delighted with the response they gave in European competition after Sunday’s 7-0 humiliation at Anfield against longtime rivals Liverpool.
The 23-year-old winger played an important role in United’s comeback victory against Betis, with a spin shot past former Manchester City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo to slot the ball into the far corner on the minute 52.
But despite the quality he displayed across the board, Ten Hag was determined not to let Antony’s performance go without evaluation.
Speaking after the game, the Dutch manager said that, among other aspects of his game, Antony, who played under Ten Hag at Ajax before his £85m summer transfer, has to be “braver” to produce consistent results for your club.
Antony scored against Real Betis in a resounding win, but still fights for consistency
Erik ten Hag was much happier with his player’s performance in the second half than he was with the first.
The United manager offered a long list of improvements his player could have made in the first half, after uneven play in the first 45 minutes.
Ten Hag said, ‘I don’t think I can just do it [score] in Europa League games, because he scored in his first three games in the Premier League.
“But in the first half, he could do better to do more actions, be more courageous, go further back, face the players, but above all more movement, using his speed.”
After half time, Ten Hag believed that Antony’s second half was much closer to the mark.
“I think the performance in the second half was much better, he scored a great goal and an important goal,” added the coach.
Antony has scored six times in all competitions since moving to Manchester from Amsterdam, with one goal in the FA Cup and two in the Europa League adding to his Premier League goal tally against Arsenal, Manchester City and Everton. .
But those three league goals came at the start of his season at United, and the winger has been unable to find the back of the net in the competition since early October.
Antony became the Eredivisie’s highest all-time transfer fee when he moved in September to join his former manager in the Premier League.
Despite this, it is not the first time that Ten Hag has hinted that there is a need for better player performance.
Antony enthusiastically celebrated his goal with teammate Marcus Rashford, who also rediscovered his shot to put United ahead within the first six minutes.
In January, following United’s 3-0 win over Reading in the FA Cup, Ten Hag said itv that Antonio was ‘still growing’ as a player.
“I think it’s growing,” Ten Hag commented at the time. ‘We also want it to be more dynamic, more variable and more direct.
“There is still more to come and I think he is capable of doing it, I think he has great potential and he has to develop it every day.”
United’s emphatic victory at Old Trafford has helped restore confidence in Ten Hag’s vision for his team, after he named an unchanged starting XI from the one he faced Liverpool on Sunday.
Several players were able to redeem themselves after a poor performance at the weekend, none more so than Bruno Fernandes, who silenced the critics with a game that his coach described as ‘brilliant’.
