A former Manchester United striker has revealed he gets ‘angry’ when he watches Antony play for them – and believes he ‘needs to go’ if he can’t find a way out of his malaise.
He also expressed reservations about the club’s interest in Crystal Palace‘s Michael Olise, citing Wilfried Zaha’s struggles at Old Trafford after leaving the London club a decade ago as a bad omen.
The striker in question is none other than Dimitar Berbatov, who played for United between 2008 and 2012.
He told Betfair: ‘For me, watching as a fan, I get angry when I watch him because it’s frustrating. I don’t want to compare him to anyone because every player has difficult spells. If Antony can’t get out of his, then he needs to go.
‘In a way, I sympathise with Antony because he obviously has talent, and I can see he does try sometimes.
Dimitar Berbatov thinks Manchester United need to get rid of Antony if he cannot find a way out of his poor form
Antony has not found the net and Berbatov says he is ‘angry’ when he watches him, but also sympathises because he has talent and tries ‘sometimes’
‘He looks angry and frustrated when he plays and because of this, he tries to do stuff and overcomplicates things, loses the ball and then becomes even angrier.
‘Antony needs someone on the pitch to show him where to run, how to run and when to release the ball. If he can’t find the answers on his own, he needs a coach, a friend, an agent, his dad, to give him advice.
‘He should even start to watch videos of some right wingers who have been there and done it. After that, if he can’t perform then it’s clearly not going to work out.
‘If a season is too short to judge someone then Antony deserves a little more time because it’s not fair. If he corrects his errors, then he will be good for the team.
‘He needs to be mentally clever first and foremost and you need to know how to take criticism. If Antony’s performances aren’t up to the standards by the end of the season, I imagine he will look for somewhere else to go.’
Manchester United’s scoring woes this season have been alarming – only Crystal Palace, Burnley, and Sheffield United have netted fewer in the Premier League.
Antony, who has been at the club since August 2022, has failed to find the net in 22 appearances so far this campaign.
Olise has reportedly emerged as a target as the club embark on a new era after Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s £1.3billion partial buy-out.
Berbatov questioned whether Michael Olise has the ability to ‘elevate’ Man United’s team
He pointed to the example of Wilfried Zaha, who United signed from Crystal Palace in 2013 but soon returned, as a cautionary tale
Olise, 22, has been at Crystal Palace since 2021 and has drawn admirers for his exciting style of play. He has scored five goals in nine top-flight outings this term.
Berbatov, however, is unconvinced. He said: ‘Man United have to be careful with transfers, and seeing the link to Michael Olise made me think about when they signed Wilf Zaha. Zaha came from Crystal Palace too and his spell at Man United was short-lived and unsuccessful.
‘They need to make sure that Olise is what’s needed at the club. Is he going to help? Is he going to elevate the team in any way? It’s a sensitive situation for Man United so they need to be careful.
‘Olise has a lot to improve on, but he has shown great quality on the pitch in his career so far. He needs the right environment and the right manager around him because if it’s not right for him then performances on the pitch will suffer.’
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