‘He’s struggled’ - Newcastle United warned against signing £86m star by ex-Leeds United man

Newcastle United failed to strengthen their options on the right wing during a frustrating summer transfer window that saw them add just two senior players to Eddie Howe’s squad. The sale of Yankuba Minteh to Brighton in June further depleted their options in that area of the pitch.

Following the closure of the summer window, Newcastle United were linked with a shock move for Manchester United winger Antony with Caught Offside reporting he is someone the Magpies may consider when the winter transfer window opens in January. The Brazilian scored just three goals in all competitions last season and has netted just 11 times for the Red Devils following his £86m move from Ajax in 2023.

Speaking about speculation linking Newcastle United with a move for the 24-year-old, former Leeds United goalkeeper Paul Robinson warned Newcastle United against making a move for Antony in January: “Antony, no, I don’t think anybody at Newcastle would touch him,” he told Football Insider.

“Listen, there’s a good player there, but he’s too lightweight for the Premier League, he takes too much time on the ball and it’s a league that’s too quick for him. When you look at other leagues, the Dutch league that he stood out in or maybe the Spanish league La Liga or Ligue 1 maybe more suited to a player like him.

“But you look at the way that he’s struggled at Manchester United, Newcastle will look at themself on a level with Manchester United. They’re competing for the same things, European football, they both want to be in the top four, that’s the type of level that they’re on now.

“The Newcastle fans nor the board will look at Antony and go, ‘that’s going to improve us in any way.’”

After selecting a front-three of Harvey Barnes, Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon against Spurs before the international break, Howe opted to pick Jacob Murphy at right wing for the win over Wolves on Sunday, with Miguel Almiron yet to make a Premier League start this campaign.