Antony might be keeping his Manchester United starting role for just one reason

The definition of the word 'gamble' in the dictionary is taking risky action in the hope of a desired result.

Manchester United gambled when investing £86million to sign Antony from Ajax last summer because they paid that sum for the player they believed he would eventually become, not for the player he was at the present moment.

Antony contributed just eight goals and four assists in his final season in the Eredivisie and considering the standard of the Netherlands' first division, that level of output didn't warrant the significant fee that was paid.

ALSO READ: United are about to face their biggest tests of the Ten Hag era

The club objectively overpaid for Antony and they were understood to be aware of that, but Ten Hag had insisted on signing the winger throughout the summer and he discussed his potential to become world-class.

Ten Hag enjoyed working with Antony at Ajax and he was convinced there was more to come from the player in Manchester. The board placed the bet and 12 months later, the jury remains out on whether the gamble has paid off.

Antony's first year at the club was underwhelming. He contributed eight goals and three assists in all competitions and that was a disappointing return, especially when he scored three times in his first as many appearances.

The winger scored against Arsenal, Manchester City and Everton in his first three matches, but the goals dried up after that purple patch and he ended the season with supporters undecided on what to think about him.

His reluctance to take on full-back hadn't helped his cause and he'd become increasingly frustrating to watch. Some argued he'd already become one-dimensional while others said he couldn't be stopped when cutting inside regardless.

It was