Manchester United have confirmed the signing of Ajax winger Antony, in a deal rising to €100million (£85.1m).
The Brazilian will sign five-year contract with the option of an additional year and becomes the club's second-most expensive signing United have paid Ajax €95m up front, with €5m due in add-ons, including a solidarity payment to his first professional club Sao Paulo.
The 22-year-old winger has been a priority target for Erik ten Hag all summer, with the two having worked together at Ajax before the manager made his move to United. Antony was omitted from the Ajax squad for the second successive game against FC Utrecht last weekend.
READ MORE: Ajax give update on Antony after star left out of squad again
So what sort of impact could Antony have at Old Trafford? We simulated the 2022/23 season with Antony in United's squad and this is what happened.
We 'signed' Antony for Man United
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2022 editor to arrange for Antony to join United, using FM22 to run the simulation. We also updated the rest of the Premier League with the latest transfers and results
Antony quickly adapted to English football and worked perfectly in Ten Hag's system, becoming a regular in the starting XI during his first season. In all competitions, Antony made 53 appearances, scoring eight and assisting 13 in that time.
His best performances came in the FA Cup, with the Brazilian averaging a rating of 8.1 per game, scoring two and assisting three in four appearances. In all competitions, his average rating was 7.48 - the best in the entire United squad.
Antony scored less than Jadon Sancho, Bruno Fernandes, Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford, though he ended the season with the most assists and the most player of the match awards. Sancho was closest to matching his rating (7.41), whilst Ronaldo ended the season as the top scorer (20).
At the end of the 2022/23 season, Football Manager 2022 put together an overall best United XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what the United best XI looked like at the end of the 2022/23 season as predicted by Football Manager 2022.
Full United best XI (4-3-3): De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Martinez, Shaw; Fernandes, Casemiro, Eriksen; Antony, Ronaldo, Sancho.
Antony made the best XI in the simulation, with Sancho moving to the left and Rashford dropping to the bench. Casemiro started behind Christian Eriksen and Fernandes in midfield, whilst Ronaldo led the line ahead of Anthony Martial.
The addition of Antony proved extremely valuable, with his attacking qualities helping United finish third in the Premier League table. 10 wins from their final 12 games saw Ten Hag's side fly up the table, overtaking Tottenham and Manchester City into the top four.
Interestingly, United ended the season as the league's top scorers, outscoring City and champions Liverpool by one goal. They had the worst defence in the top six, showing where else could be improved in the side.
In the cup competitions, United had some decent runs, but not enough to earn some silverware. After drawing 1-1 in 120 minutes, United lost to Liverpool on penalties in the FA Cup semi-final.
They also reached the Carabao Cup semis, but Ten hag's side lost 4-1 over the two legs to Arsenal. Their worst cup competition was the Europa League, crashing out in the quarter-finals after losing 3-1 on aggregate against AC Milan
Overall, FM22 predicts that Antony could be a great fit at United, with the winger becoming Ten Hag's best player in the simulation. His explosive dynamic on the right worked perfectly in the front three, helping United become a dangerous side and earn a top four spot in the Premier League.
Would you like to see Antony sign for Manchester United? Let us know in the comments!
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