Man Utd: £68m Brazilian now 'unlikely to join' at Old Trafford

Manchester United may still struggle to sign Ajax winger Antony this summer after reviving their interest, according to journalist Dean Jones.

Erik ten Hag has been eager to reunite with the highly-rated 22-year-old since arriving at Old Trafford and had been tipped to return with a renewed approach following a difficult start to his tenure.

Last month, GOAL revealed that United had offered €60 million (£51m) for Antony but the Ajax hierarchy were holding out for a fee closer to €80m (£68m).

It then seemed as though the Red Devils had ended their pursuit of the Brazil international, yet Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth then claimed they are now ‘back in’ for the forward.

And David Ornstein of The Athletic has since reported that United ‘submitted an offer of €80 million (£67.6m)’ for Antony on Wednesday but saw it turned down by Ajax.

Old Trafford chiefs are supposedly ‘not optimistic’ over their chances of prising the South American from the Johan Cruijff ArenA after their fresh approach was knocked back.

Ten Hag appears eager to strengthen his attacking options before the window slams shut on September 1 and may now be forced to move on to alternative targets.

The 20-time English champions are in dire need of further reinforcements after only being able to bring in Christian Erikesen, Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia so far this summer.

However, Jones informed GiveMeSport that he is ‘not convinced’ United can actually pull off the signing of Antony.

He said: “I’m not convinced about Antony. There seems to be a feeling in the Netherlands that that one’s not going to happen. And obviously, a lot of other wide forwards have been linked now.”

A recent report from Sky Sports claimed that United are preparing a move