The incredible price Man Utd will sell Antony for after new LaLiga suitors pose threat

Manchester United know they will make a loss on Antony despite his improved form with Real Betis – and now it’s emerged in a new report how much they think they can sell him for.

Antony is one of Man Utd’s biggest wastes of money in the transfer market. They paid more than £82m to sign him from Ajax, but even when he had the same manager that had got the best out of him in the Eredivisie, he struggled for form in the Premier League. He only scored five top-flight goals for the club over two and a half years.

Thus, Man Utd were glad to see the back of Antony when he left on loan for Real Betis in January. Perhaps to their surprise, though, he has been in excellent form in LaLiga.

Now, Man Utd have a dilemma on their hands over what to do with Antony. Has he earned himself a second chance, or is this the right time to cash in?

All signs are still pointing towards a new exit for Antony in the summer, since he is still out of Ruben Amorim’s plans. But there’s still a lot of thinking to do about the next steps.

According to Football Insider, Man Utd have now made a decision about their asking price for Antony. The website claims the Red Devils will accept bids between £20m and £30m for the 25-year-old.

Even with his form improving in Spain, it shows just how much Antony has deteriorated in general since Man Utd invested in him.

Staying in Spanish football seems to be the option that Antony will explore the most. Real Betis would love to keep him after he helped them into the Conference League final, but may have to try and persuade Man Utd into extending his loan to do so.

A permanent bid by Betis isn’t ruled out, but even at £20m, it would have to be one of their biggest ever outlays.

They now have a new threat to contend with, though, after it was revealed last week that Atletico Madrid have taken a shine to Antony – which is now being backed up by more outlets.

At this stage, Diego Simeone’s side are just weighing up whether to make a move for the Brazil international or not, but they would be a strong rival for his signature.

Atleti are regular contenders in the Champions League, although Betis themselves aren’t too far away from the top five in LaLiga thanks to their improvement in the time since Antony joined.

GO FURTHER – How Antony went from Man Utd flop to ‘top class’ LaLiga star at Real Betis

Can Real Betis stave off rival threats for Antony?

Man Utd have Antony under contract until 2027 and will be discussing his future with Betis once the season ends.

The Spanish side’s president Angel Haro said earlier this week: “His name was put on the table by the sporting director. It was a low-priced approach because Manchester United assumed almost all the salary.

“The player wanted to come to Betis. It was a pure loan, it was very cheap for Betis and there was no option to negotiate anything.

“Keeping Antony is very, very complicated. We will have a meeting with Manchester United to extend the loan for another year, to be able to share a percentage of the player… It’s about seeing the predisposition of the player and Manchester United.

“The first filter is put by Manchester United, and then the negotiation of the player would come, but that is a long way off.

“In addition, now the player is plugged in wanting to lift a title with Betis. When the time comes and the season is over, he will be able to do his part if this option opens up.”

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IN FOCUS: The timeline of Antony at Real Betis

➡️ January 25: Antony signs for Real Betis on loan for the rest of the season

➡️ February 2: Antony makes his debut for Real Betis and is named player of the match in a 2-2 draw with Athletic Club

➡️ February 9: After scoring his first goal for Real Betis against Celta de Vigo, Antony earns the player of the match award for a second successive game

➡️ February 13: Antony inspires Real Betis to a Conference League win over Gent with a goal from outside the box

➡️ February 16: Antony gets a goal and assist in a 3-0 win over Real Sociedad

➡️ February 19: Antony is nominated for the player of the month award in LaLiga

➡️ February 23: Towards the end of a game in which he got an assist against Getafe, Antony receives the first red card of his Real Betis spell – but it is rescinded on appeal three days later

➡️ March 1: Antony completes all 90 minutes of Real Betis’ win over Real Madrid – their first in five years

➡️ March 13: Real Betis beat Vitoria de Guimaraes to reach the Conference League quarter-finals, with Antony getting a goal and assist in the second leg

➡️ April 21: Antony scores his first LaLiga goal in over two months in a win over Girona

➡️ May 4: Antony scores the winning goal for Betis in added time away at Espanyol

➡️ May 8: A week after scoring in the first leg, Antony gets a goal and assist in the second leg of the Conference League semi-final against Fiorentina to send Betis into a final against Chelsea