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25th February 2024
10:52am GMT
Erik ten Hag has explained why he chose to bring Antony on in the 99th minute of Manchester United's 2-1 defeat at home to Fulham on Saturday.
Fulham were surprise winners on the day as Alex Iwobi struck home the winner in the seventh minute of injury time and not long after Harry Maguire thought he had salvaged a point with his 89th minute equaliser.
Antony has performed well below par this season and even with Rasmus Hojlund missing through injury, Ten Hag opted to give 19-year-old Omari Forson his full Premier League debut instead.
The Brazilian was eventually subbed on but was given just 40 seconds to impress on what turned out to be a birthday to forget for the winger.
After the game Ten Hag was asked why he gave his £88m signing such little time, the Dutchman called for Antony to "step up".
He said: "It was nothing to do with fitness. He is fit but we have many options on the right side where we lack in other positions due to injuries.
"The form in Antony we all have seen and he has to step up. I see it in training but also other Omari and Amad Diallo and Garnacho deserve to play."
Victory on Saturday was the first time Fulham have won at Old Trafford since 2003 and their first away win since the opening day of the season.
"We struggled with their influence and their impact on our left side," Ten Hag continued.
"But we reacted well and how to deal with it, how to step up from the back and once we had that we got more from the game and took control to create the chances.
"With the squad we had today we should have won this game. Both halves were slow starts and we should be ready from the first whistle.
"That’s a point of criticism but the team showed big character in both halves."
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