Is Sancho a bust? And, is Antony headed the same way too?

[scottser]

Anthony has more aggression and attitude. He will knuckle down and put the hard yards in. I've no doubt he'll do well.
Both were massively overpriced though.

 

[Stig]

Nobody was mad enough to play Giggs on the right! (Although I think he did play on the right in 99).

Just the first half in the final or more ?

 

[OrcaFat]

Just the first half in the final or more ?

Just the final yeah. The biggest game of his life! At the time I thought it was a mistake and thought Johnsen should have played CM and put May in at CB then Giggs and Becks on their usual wings, Blomqvist on the bench. But what do I know.

 

[rimaldo]

i think the question that’s on the tip of all our tongues is who is the better kisser?

 

[RedRonaldo]

I am very disappointed with Sancho so far, spending 1.5 years of his time here yet still struggle with his form, and performing worst than our 18 year old academy player, and he is our highest paid player. If he couldn't find back his form by end of this season, I might just give up on him.

Antony though, he is only here for half season, although not quite matching our expectation on him in terms of general play (mostly due to his price tag too), I think I will give him another half year to settle at the very least. At least he scored some goals, which is fine for now.

Both signings prove to be very bad piece of business though. over 160m spend on these 2 players. We could have spend around half of the sum and still get similar quality of service elsewhere.

 

[glazed]

It's too early to tell is the only sensible answer.

 

[berbasloth4]

Sancho is a young boy who since signing has played for 4 different managers. He has had injuries he has mental health problems. When he has been fit and run of games he has shown glimpses of talent and again he is a kid giving him a chance.

And as for Antony he has had about a dozen games at most catch yourselves on.

Imagine if he dropped every player based on there first few games. Evra, vidic, de gea, Sheringham, Cole, stam how silly would we have been.

 

[Bert_]

Sancho is a young boy who since signing has played for 4 different managers. He has had injuries he has mental health problems. When he has been fit and run of games he has shown glimpses of talent and again he is a kid giving him a chance.

And as for Antony he has had about a dozen games at most catch yourselves on.

Imagine if he dropped every player based on there first few games. Evra, vidic, de gea, Sheringham, Cole, stam how silly would we have been.

Some feckers were writing Casemiro off a few months ago! Some people have zero patience and need instant gratification. If they don't get that then they will just abandon it and move to the next shiny thing.

 

[TheRedHearted]

Sancho should have ended his first season with over 10 assists in the league minimum not his fault so many of his teammates including ronaldo blew those wonderful passes and crosses to hell. Go watch his higlight videos of that season and see for yourself.

Large section of our fans have written him off but I am 100% sure he is going to silence all of you if Erik gived him a proper chance to build his confidence up.

For me however it seems Erik is dead set on Antony..

I’ve also got no doubt he will come good. Give him the Bruno spot soon, Bruno’s giving the ball away is probably why everyone stood clear.
I wish he could just stay up front and we make Bruno work as the false 9 and we find another creator who doesn’t give the ball away like he does. Game changer to have someone like that. Also still feel like Felix could do that for us.

 

[croadyman]

I’ve also got no doubt he will come good. Give him the Bruno spot soon, Bruno’s giving the ball away is probably why everyone stood clear

That would be big call from Erik but do you know what I would like to see him try it

 

[Steve 007]

Sancho and Anthony are both young. They show glimpses of what they are capable of. Let’s remember how great Rashford is this season and how poor he was last year. He’s maturing after the Euro disappointment and racial abuse. Sancho also received this.
Anthony is young and in a new league which is a step up, it’s taken Varane a World Cup and multiple champions league winner a year to settle and now he looks amazing, give Anthony a chance and see what he does in his second year.

 

[duffer]

Obviously both young enough to come good but you do seem to have some real talent waiting in the wings (see what I did there) in Garnacho, Pellestri and Amad.

How many opportunities should they get ahead of their younger competition?

 

[Steve 007]

Obviously both young enough to come good but you do seem to have some real talent waiting in the wings (see what I did there) in Garnacho, Pellestri and Amad.

How many opportunities should they get ahead of their younger competition?

Anthony is joint number 2 goal scorer with Bruno and Martial all on 5.

 

[Yakuza_devils]

ETH is a top coach and is a good judge of top talents. Sancho and Antony are firmly in his plan. He has helped Rashford, AWB, Dalot, Shaw, Bruno, Martial, Fred, DDG, Garnacho got back to form. I'm very sure he has a plan for Sancho and Antony.

The players that I think ETH already decided to sell or play less important roles are Maguire, Lindelof and McT because they may not suit his style of play.

 

[Borys]

I don't get this. As disappointing as Antony has been, he has been miles better than Sancho. Kind of weird to see how much better has Sancho become during these months he didn't play. The Lucas Leiva syndrome when a player becomes better the less he plays.

Is that so? They look very similar. They have the same stats for goal contributions (3 G+A) in almost the same playing time. Their stats in terms of expected G+A are on similar level (0,36 Antony; 0,31 Sancho). In fact Sancho (expected G+A) stats were better last year (0,42) than currently, so once he's back I'd expect better performances for him and that's very likely to happen imo. It's not right to say one or another has been clearly better, they are on the same level.

Antony has scored 3 goals in his first 3 EPL games, he massively outperformed his xG. He is either extremely good shooter, or was extremely lucky - but it doesn't matter that much now as it seems to me that Antony has been found out. Defenders don't allow him to cut inside where he does look dangerous, so he's pushed to the sideline where he's not a threat (lowest 1 percentile for shot creating actions for wingers).

Sancho and Antony are not alike. When we paid 73m for Sancho it felt like it's massive fee BUT we expected him to perform on the same level that he did for Dortmund. Imo the fee was justified, if that doesn't work out and he's a flop then I won't blame the club as I also thought he is super exciting player we should go for.

With Antony though, we splashed 82m for... I don't know, I guess for the potential that ETH sees and I don't see. If Antony flops this is 80% on the club who went for a player who was hardly exciting in Eredivisie. I don't know if we can expect Antony to get faster and start using weaker foot more. Wishful thinking.

I am confident Sancho will turn this around and have a good career with us.
When it comes to Antony, I just hope I'm wrong about him because I don't know how he gets from here to what is needed from a winger in this club.

 

[duffer]

Anthony is joint number 2 goal scorer with Bruno and Martial all on 5.

Ok.

 

[Josep Dowling]

Bit harsh on Antony I think. He’s already got scored some important goals this season. I was expecting him to have more pace and take a player on a lot more than he does, but he hasn’t been that bad.

Sancho on the other hand has been one of the biggest let downs in recent seasons. Again no pace, can’t beat players, safety first passing. The only memorable goal was against City but we got battered that game. He’s been shocking given his wage and price tag. And now he’s disappeared and we don’t really know the reason.

 

[Shakesy]

The fact that this thread is so popular means the poor OP (who hasn't posted on the forum since page 2), started a discussion that is sorely needed. Mind, I don't agree with all @Kush's points. Yet, every second post insulted him despite his valid, albeit impatient, concerns.

#bringbackKush

 

[shabz]

I think it's too early to say for both of them. Sancho has played under 3 managers in 18 months and by all accounts the first 12 months would have been an awful first season for any big name signing to come into. The start of the season under Ten Hag he showed glimpses of what he is able to do, however, any progress would have been derailed by his off the pitch problems, which we now hope are fully resolved.

Antony came in late in the window, didn't have a pre season and a world cup in the middle of the season is far from ideal and he has gone from playing in front of Dalot before the break to AWB after the break. So inevitably his role and what is expected of him would change as well. I'm certain both will come good under this manager and with the direction the team is going.

Hopefully, we can see their capabilities and talent start to emerge in the back end of this season.

 

[Champ]

Never said he was a flop just that you’re using stats to give the impression he’s lifting trees

Ronaldo was our top goal scorer last year but we all knew it was a detriment to the team
Tammy Abraham scored more than Osimhen last year does this mean hes better ?
Silva brings way way more to the team, I’d happily swap Antony’s goals for Silvas all round game, we’d create more and hence score more

A classic case of making things up to suit your own narrative here!

Explain where I said he was lifting trees?

I think of you actually read what I put again I claimed that I would have quite happily taken a 5 goal output from Antony thus far, as in comparison to Silva and Grealish he has a better output in that regard.

But feel free to carry on making stuff up to suit your own point of view.

 

[Telsim]

Absence makes the heart grow fonder in the case of Sancho in this thread. I have yet to see him display his supposed great talent in a United shirt. He's been average to poor so far.

Neither have what it takes to succeed on this level and be a part of a title-winning squad, in my opinion. Could potentially be decent players, but I can't see them ever being an integral part. Sancho has the technical ability, but lacks the physicality and intensity necessary for the league. His defensive contribution is a major weakness and he is far too slow. Antony is the opposite. Works hard, tracks back, and has pace, but he is extremely limited and predictable due to not having a right foot. His decision making leaves a lot to be desired.

It's shocking the kind of money the club spent on both of them. 18-year-old Garnacho has shown far more than either of them.

 

[Jeppers7]

I’m confident both will turn out to be good signings. People need to leave transfer fees to one side. There’s plenty of time and plenty of ability in both.

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

Tan Hag helped Rashford to get back to his best level, of course Rashford deserves huge credit for his performances but it is obvious Ten Hag was important in helping him.

So, my expectations are that Ten Hag will get the best out of both Sancho & Antony, both got the talent already so I am confident we will see it soon.

 

[BenitoSTARR]

Our fan base is a joke if we’re already calling a player who is 21 and has a goal every 187 mins a flop.

He’s already performing as a 1 in 2 winger whilst offering pressing and link play.

He’s not perfect but I maintain he was the best available left footed right winger we could have bought at the time.

 

[duffer]

Our fan base is a joke if we’re already calling a player who is 21 and has a goal every 187 mins a flop.

21? He's 23 next month.

He's definitely not a flop though, far too early to call him that.

 

[Bondi77]

I have seen pictures of Sancho in training and he looks a bit trimmer to me so that is a good sign.

 

[angak]

Was just about to post this. They are technically still kids in the football world, and to write them off at this age is beyond premature, especially a player who has been here not even half a year.

How old were KDB & Salah when Chelsea sold them ?

 

[angak]

£158m on two players who have looked underwhelming... And now they're vying for one position.

The money in itself isn't the issue. It's the impact on FFP which prohibits our ability to spend in coming years.

 

[Shakesy]

I have seen pictures of Sancho in training and he looks a bit trimmer to me so that is a good sign.

Definitely leaner. And meaner

 

[angak]

You can't possibly be serious. Other than having scored goals, Antony has done absolutely nothing so far. Sancho also scored occasionally, but he created a decent amount of chances for the team, which Antony has been unable to do so far. Sancho also has way better technique and it is absolutely laughable to say he can't take players on.

Sancho is a much better footballer than Antony.

If you watch Antony closely he struggles to run with the ball. Sancho is so smooth when he moves with the ball it's just that he doesn't have power & strength to win challenges and beat a man.

The Antony signing is a massive red flag when it comes to Ten Hag recruitment abilities.

 

[RoadTrip]

It's too early to tell is the only sensible answer.

This

 

[I’m loving my life]

The real important question is what will our iconic first choice acronym be?

Rashford, Anthony, Martial (RAM)?
Sancho, Anthony, Rashford (SAR)?
Or the City fan’s favourite?

Rashford, Anthony, Garnacho?

 

[Malone_Post]

Neither are suited to PL football. They both lack pace, power & athleticism which is shown in their clear inability to ever beat a fullback or get in behind. And neither are technically good enough to make up for this. Having two wingers who can’t consistently beat their man is akin to playing with two arms tied behind your back. It makes our attack incredibly blunt. And this isn’t going to change, they are what they are. The fact we’ve managed to spend £160 million on two wingers with such obvious, and similar, deficiencies is outrageous.

 

[Garethw]

Neither are suited to PL football. They both lack pace, power & athleticism which is shown in their clear inability to ever beat a fullback or get in behind. And neither are technically good enough to make up for this. Having two wingers who can’t consistently beat their man is akin to playing with two arms tied behind your back. It makes our attack incredibly blunt. And this isn’t going to change, they are what they are. The fact we’ve managed to spend £160 million on two wingers with such obvious, and similar, deficiencies is outrageous.

Sancho is most definitely technically gifted enough.

 

[Malone_Post]

Sancho is most definitely technically gifted enough.

I’m yet to see much evidence of this in his 18 months at United. He very rarely, if ever, beats a fullback. His go to move has been to square them up, do a couple of tricks, get nowhere, and pass it back into midfield. He simply can’t skin fullbacks consistently with pace or skill. He’s just not a technical dribbler.

 

[Borys]

Neither are suited to PL football. They both lack pace, power & athleticism which is shown in their clear inability to ever beat a fullback or get in behind. And neither are technically good enough to make up for this. Having two wingers who can’t consistently beat their man is akin to playing with two arms tied behind your back. It makes our attack incredibly blunt. And this isn’t going to change, they are what they are. The fact we’ve managed to spend £160 million on two wingers with such obvious, and similar, deficiencies is outrageous.

Sancho is definitely technically good enough, this was never questionable. The problem with Jadon was he seems reluctant to go for a physical battle. He's just too soft, happy to play it safe. Fullbacks will always give him hard time, hence I would give him a go in the #10 positions in some games (van de Beek is definitely not an answer there). I think he can be a decent ball carrier through the midfield, that's what he did for Dortmund regularly. He'll always struggle when asked to do what Garnacho does for us. But he is still useful.

I agree with the bolded part, however it's looking very likely Antony and Sancho will compete for RW, with Rashford and Garnacho owning the left side. So the right side might be a bit more "conservative", but it's still a good balance.

 

[BenitoSTARR]

21? He's 23 next month.

He's definitely not a flop though, far too early to call him that.

Regardless he was and still is the best left footed RW we could have at the moment.

Give him a season with the squad with the PL and I’m sure he’ll be good and a fair few will look a bit silly for writing him off 4 months into his time here.

 

[Walters_19_MuFc]

I'm hoping Sancho finds his form because he's 10 times the player Antony is.

Get him back on the right!

 

[Josh 76]

I'm hoping Sancho finds his form because he's 10 times the player Antony is.

Get him back on the right!

Antony has played better for Utd than Sancho has in 18 months.

 

[AdNani]

Antony has played better for Utd than Sancho has in 18 months.

Disagree with that, It's been oppposite for me, Sancho has performed better while not getting the numbers, while Antony's goals have somewhat masked his performances.

The amount of times Sancho put it on a plate for people last year only for them to feck up the finish was mind blowing. He also looks far more capable of beating a man.