Soccer

‘Antony stupidity must stop or Ten Hag will axe him despite soft spot for flop’

Manchester United icon Dimitar Berbatov has urged Antony to cut out the bulls*** or risk being axed by Erik ten Hag.

The Brazilian forward has struggled to justify his mammoth price tag since joining for £82million from Ajax last season and is yet to score in 11 appearances this season. Berbatov, who spent four years at United, says Antony must stop "overcomplicating" his game with silly, needless tricks and start putting the team's needs first.

"Antony needs to know that every time he steps on the pitch, he needs to justify Ten Hag’s trust, work his socks off to show, ‘yes boss, you’re trusting me, I don’t want to let you or the team down’," Berbatov told Betfair. "However, right now, it’s not working well for Antony, so my piece of advice would be to keep it simple, don’t overcomplicate stuff."

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"The moment you start thinking you’re Ronaldinho or Zidane while you’re struggling in games, you’re going to suffer even more. Don’t try to do stupid things like tricks that are not beneficial for the team.

"You’re so quick, use your pace to get in-behind the defence, get on the ball and start to record assists or shoot to score. That’s how simple it is. Stay disciplined and concentrated – it’s not so difficult."

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Berbatov claims Ten Hag has a "soft spot" for the forward given their history at Ajax, but said he wouldn't be surprise to see it dissipate if Antony's form fails to improve.

"Erik Ten Hag likes Antony; everybody knows that. It’s clear he has a soft spot for him because every coach is like this with certain players … but I wouldn’t be surprised if Antony doesn’t play the next game, because everyone saw he wasn’t at his best against Fulham. So, let’s see what Ten Hag decides."

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Berbatov won two Premier League titles at United, and scored 56 goals in 149 appearances for the club. He joined from Tottenham for £31m in 2008 and formed a formidable attacking partnership with Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.

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