Erik ten Hag and Antony issue perfect response to fears of Man Utd dressing room unrest

Antony put in a better performance for Erik ten Hag (Image: Stu Forster/Getty Images)

For Manchester United vs. Chelsea, Antony won a penalty and put on a performance that was full of effort, even though Scott McTominay stole the show with two goals.

Erik ten Hag should have responded to reports that he had lost the dressing room at Old Trafford in only one way, and that was not by forbidding reporters from hearing his pointless pre-game reflections.

He did this by telling his players they had a point to prove, that the most well-known pundits on television were making fun of them, and that notable former United players were picking apart his team.

Antony had grumbled in the run-up to this cracking competition that none of those old boys had anything positive to say about him. That one has an easy answer: very seldom has he given them a good reason to say anything.

You must first see progress in someone’s game before you can be constructive, even if they are having trouble with form. Additionally, the pricey Brazilian hasn’t shown many encouraging signs this season.

A number of his United teammates, including Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, have also been accused of being unduly eager to put in the hard yards. In some cases, however, there have been very few indications of this. All of these accusations are damning.

However, Antony’s work rate against Chelsea was excellent on this particular occasion as he entered duels with a tenacity that has far too frequently been conspicuous by its absence. He was undoubtedly busier than he had been in a while, drawing fouls in hazardous spots and winning the first penalty that Bruno Fernandes softly threw at Robert Sanchez.

Crucially, he had also gained possession just before Scott McTominay’s expertly executed opening goal. However, concerns regarding his finished product are reasonable.

Antony got the start ahead of Marcus Rashford vs Chelsea ( Image: Matthew Peters/Getty Images)

When done flawlessly, the Arjen Robben routine—cutting inside onto the strongly-favored left and attempting to curl one into the far corner—is fine, but with Antony, it’s rarely the case. Additionally, he caused problems for Mauricio Pochtettino’s team a few times when there were easier alternatives.

Whatever the outcome against Chelsea, though, one of the most crucial things for Ten Hag—let’s call it a major side issue—was that his players demonstrated that, despite looking as though they were defeated at St. James’ Park last Saturday, they got back up and worked like Manchester United players. And Antony certainly did that, considering he played for a mere thirty minutes during that appalling performance at Newcastle.