09 Jun 2025 16:57:01
Reports today suggest that Ten Hag tried to block the Antony transfer but the powers that be didn't want to allow him to be acquired by a rival club, namely Arsenal. True or not? Either way it demonstrates managerial ineptitude. Players should not be bought at inflated prices at all but certainly not for the main purpose of preventing other teams from getting the player but because they fit into the system the manager is trying to implement and will improve the team.
09 Jun 2025 17:24:53
And where was that released from ETH side I would guess, strange that’s come out when he just been employed and don’t want them to think he is incompetent when looking at a player, perhaps they will also make an excuse for every other one of the terrible buys by ETH and try to blame someone else!
09 Jun 2025 18:08:30
The club at that particular moment was a ? show. If you read Laurie Whitwells fantastic in-depth articles on those transfer dealings around that time, it is incredible.
I lay no blame at the managers door, for he wanted very different things to happen.
{Ed077's Note - don't know about others but Antony was on the club radar before OGS was sacked, ETH wasn't a biggest factor there.
09 Jun 2025 18:44:32
That may not go down well with certain posters on here Ed ??.
{Ed077's Note - but that was well documented here, by Ed002. Antony was being looked at by the club before ETH was here.
09 Jun 2025 18:51:41
Woah stop these revelations before the anti ETH posters start listing 100 reasons why when it rains its still his fault.
{Ed077's Note - Utd have made countless terrible transfer decisions, before and during ETH time
09 Jun 2025 21:21:43
Considering all the many meringues of mess we are all aware of, little would really surprise me tbh - certainly not this Antony/ Ten Hag 'revelation'.
Even now, if it was revealed that Sir Jim had banned all paper/ plastic cups in the office with the expectation of watching staff tightly gripping cup shapes with their hands, I'd not even break stride.
If he rolled out a big batch of shewees for female staff so he can close their toilets, I'd shrug a hmmm and await the next dose of idiocy.
And this is now, when we're meant to be sorting stuff out - by eck, what a shambles.
09 Jun 2025 21:34:12
Whatever people have to say about eth he does not negotiate contracts and fees. He had a veto on any signings he said so himself but he was not responsible for what we paid.
Anthony was on a lot of clubs radar. He is a better player than he has shown at old Trafford. I hope Beth's can raise the money but if not I think others will Shaw interest.
09 Jun 2025 21:38:40
Who cares at this point? What's done is done, and whoever it was who ultimately made the decision, well they are gone and no longer here.
I'm more concerned about the decisions of those now running things and how they can get Antony off the books.
10 Jun 2025 06:39:44
Maybe Antony was on the radar, but I am sure if before he was signed ETH had gone to whoever was buying him and said, look he been a player of mine and known to me for years, he won’t make the transition to the EPL and he only got 1 foot, not got greatest attitude with sulking, is a one trick pony on top of that got accusations in his private life…. even the stupidest person would have had to take notice…. and think oh maybe let’s reevaluate!
{Ed077's Note - private life stuff only came up after what a year or more at United? ETH was new to the PL too so I'm not completely surprised that he didn't quite comprehend the pace and physicality of the league beforehand
11 Jun 2025 14:34:40
No the private stuff first reared its head a year before he joined…. So would have expected club manager to be aware then.