Manchester United already have a player who could be like a new signing next season

If there was anything that Erik ten Hag wanted to achieve last summer, it was to be reunited with Antony at Old Trafford.

After several weeks of speculation, negotiations and even a tantrum or two, Manchester United signed the Brazilian international from Ajax in a deal worth up to £85.5million on the final day of the summer transfer window. He became the club's fifth and final permanent signing of the summer, putting the gloss on a record-breaking summer.

Ten Hag was desperate to strengthen United's right-wing options throughout the summer and Antony, who he had worked with in the Netherlands, was his only target to achieve that mission. The transfer fee, unsurprisingly, raised eyebrows across the globe, not least because the winger had never played in one of Europe's top five leagues.

For many, it was considered a huge gamble, similarly to Lisandro Martinez's move to M16 from Ajax a few weeks earlier. Antony, however, began to quash those fears almost immediately after arriving in Manchester.

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His United career was just 35 minutes old when he netted his first goal for the club, putting the Reds 1-0 up against Arsenal on his debut. It was just the kind of start that both he and Ten Hag had dreamt about.

He then added two more goals to his tally, scoring in back-to-back Premier League fixtures against Manchester City and Everton. With three goals in his first three league appearances, United appeared to be getting their money's worth, even though his overall game still had bits missing.

And it is those improvements that United's supporters are still waiting to see, certainly on a consistent basis. After plundering three goals in his first three league