Expert issues worrying Antony claim after Man United latest – ‘from what I know…’
Antony is struggling to adapt to the Premier League following his summer move to Man United and that’s why he’s picking up injuries.
That is the opinion of medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in injury and data analysis, speaking exclusively to Football Insider.
Antony made an £85million switch from Ajax to Man United in the summer, with new boss Erik ten Hag keen to reunite with the Brazilian winger at Old Trafford.
He made a strong start with the Red Devils, scoring in all three of his first appearances.
But the 22-year-old then picked up an injury in late October that saw him miss a handful of games for United, and it seems to still be affecting him even after the winter break with Ten Hag leaving him out of the 3-0 victory over Bournemouth.
Dinnery believes Antony’s inconsistency and injuries come from his struggles to adapt to the intensity of the Premier League.
“There’s certainly that element as he is struggling to adapt,” Dinnery told Football Insider.
“From what we know, Antony was struggling with a problem before the winter break that initially was reported as a fairly minor and innocuous injury expected to last just two or three days but that stretched beyond and we never saw him before the World Cup.
“There is always going to be knocks and niggles along the way to recovery and he’s also still adapting to the intensity of the Premier League.
“Not only that, but he’s also adapting to a new environment.
“The demands physically are likely to be very different domestically compared to the national team as Erik ten Hag wants his players to work extremely hard.
“He doesn’t leave any stone unturned and he has really high expectations of his players.
“But also, given the type of player that Antony is, he’s going to invite challenges and he’s going to pick up knocks through that too.“
In other news, Man United are told to pull the plug on signing striker in January