Antony will not be able to play for MU in the near future because he is involved in a scandal of assaulting his ex-girlfriend. So when the Brazilian star is absent, who will the Red Devils use on the right wing?
Recently, MU announced that Antony will not return to England “until further notice”. He is having to deal with accusations of assaulting his ex-girlfriend – something the 23-year-old player has always denied.
Since the beginning of the 2023/24 Premier League season, Antony has always been coach Erik ten Hag’s number 1 choice in the right-wing role, despite this player’s unimpressive performance. After the first 4 matches, Antony did not pocket any goals or assists.
With Antony not having a return date due to a private scandal, MU will definitely need a new option on the right wing once the Premier League returns next weekend. On September 16, MU will welcome Brighton at Old Trafford.
Looking at MU’s personnel situation at this time, Coach Ten Hag has two names that specialize in playing on the right wing: Facundo Pellistri and Shola Shoretire. Putting it on the scale, Pellistri is definitely more trustworthy, because, after all, the Uruguayan player has more or less scored points in the 2023 Summer tour. Meanwhile, Shoretire is still too young to be trusted by Ten Hag.
Jadon Sancho and Alejandro Garnacho can also replace Antony on the right wing, but in reality, the duo’s preferred position is the left wing, where they like to run and cut into the middle to create assists or finish with their right foot. However, Sancho is currently in conflict with Ten Hag, so he is unlikely to be used.
Given the urgent context, Ten Hag will most likely pull Garnacho – who is in the best form among the names mentioned above – to play on the right wing to replace Antony. Because rookie striker Ramus Hojlund is completely healthy, Marcus Rashford will likely return to his natural left-wing position.
According to statistics from Transfermarkt, Garnacho has only played on the right wing once at MU, which was in the home team’s 0-1 defeat against Real Sociedad in the Europa League group stage last September. In that match, Garnacho came on as a substitute and played 19 minutes. If he is the main starter instead of Antony, it promises to be a challenge, but at the same time, it is also an opportunity for Garnacho to prove his ability.