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Manchester United winger Antony and his agents are reportedly poised to have crunch talks with the club over extending his stay with Real Betis.
Antony has enjoyed a dramatic change in fortunes since leaving United in January and joining Betis on loan.
The Brazilian has managed an impressive eight goal contributions in 11 games across all competitions. Since his arrival in Spain, he has also created more chances from open play (17) and more big chances (6) than any other player in the division.
He has been a key player for Betis, turning them into the second-highest-scoring team in La Liga in the second half of the season, after being one of the lowest-scoring teams at the start of the campaign.
Betis are believed to be keen on keeping Antony and it was previously claimed that United want around €50m to sanction his signing, with the likes of Juventus, Bayern Munich and Real Sociedad also keen on him. Saudi Arabia has also been mentioned as a possible destination for the forward.
Earlier on Wednesday, a report covered by The Peoples Person stated that Betis want Antony on loan for another year, ahead of the 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.
To try and reach an agreement with United, Betis are prepared to cover a larger portion of the 25-year-old’s wages.
Now, Estadio Deportivo reveal that Antony is set for decisive talks with United as he also wants to continue working under Manuel Pellegrini.
The new outlet explain that Antony’s agents have been “extremely pleased” with his progress at Estadio Benito Villamarín and have scheduled a meeting with United next week in an effort to get a deal over the line “quickly and to avoid interference.”
On their part, Betis have “activated the machinery to extend a prolific relationship” between themselves and the winger.
Estadio Deportivo acknowledge that from United’s perspective, it would be risky to loan out a player whose terms are expiring in 2027. Antony has no intention of putting pen to paper on a contract extension. If the Red Devils were to agree to another year-long loan, they would almost certainly insert “some kind of purchase option.”
However, Betis are wary of United including an expensive buy option that would be out of their reach. If this happens, Los Verdiblancos are considering the possibility of co-owning Antony’s rights with another club.
This means that instead of fully buying Antony, Betis would enter into a shared ownership agreement – similar to previous deals they’ve made with FC Barcelona for players like Emerson Royal and Chadi Riad.
Under this, Antony could either play for Betis or the partner club depending on the agreement. If he is sold for a higher fee, the partner club would receive the majority of the transfer profit, while Betis would still benefit from the transaction.
Essentially, Betis would significantly reduce its financial risk while still having access to the player, and the partner club would invest with hopes of raking in a bigger profit later.
But it’s hard to see how this model would work in Antony’s case considering he’s an established star who would command a sizable transfer fee.
Qualifying for the Champions League would massively help Pellegrini’s side to land Antony. The player’s willingness to “make a strong stand” could also be instrumental.
Betis vice president José Miguel López Catalán spoke on Radio Marca [via Mundo Deportivo] and said about the Antony situation, “It wasn’t easy to bring Antony in and it won’t be easy to keep him.”
“I think it was harder to bring him in than it is to try to keep him now because he’s already familiar with Betis. It hasn’t been easy, like bringing in players like Lo Celso, Fekir, or players of that level.”
“When that river comes, we’ll cross it. It depends a lot on what the player wants, the relationship with the other club, and who comes for him, because there are projects we can’t compete with. We have the ambition to have these players, world-class stars, but we also can’t do crazy things. We’re going to try.”
Antony’s transfer is certainly shaping up to be an intriguing one, with plenty of twists likely still to come.
Featured image Fran Santiago via Getty Images
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