Ivorian Amad Diallo has been phenomenal for Manchester United since Erik ten Hag's sacking.
The former manager favoured Antony over the Ivorian, having invested heavily in the former Ajax star. In the 92 games played for the Red Devils, the Brazilian has managed to score just 12 goals and provide five assists.
Interestingly, Diallo has eight goals and 10 assists in just 45 outings for the English side. Under new coach Ruben Amorim, Diallo has two goals and six assists across all competitions as Antony continues to struggle.
Why did Ten Hag favour Antony?
In his recent interview with Podcast and Chill with MacG, South Africa legend Benni McCarthy – who served as Manchester United strikers coach, has revealed why Ten Hag favoured Antony as opposed to Diallo.
“Tactically, when we set up, the manager felt that Antony was the best, better player for the job that he wanted because he knew Antony from Ajax. He was his player, so he invested in him, and the club supported him. So, of course, he had to support the player that he bought,” McCarthy stated.
“So, I think that’s why he persisted in playing Antony. It’s because he knew the capabilities when Antony was at his best. And then you had Garnacho who was also playing well, scoring goals.”
Why it got worse for Diallo
“[Marcus] Rashford, on any given day, could demolish anyone. And then you’ve got [Rasmus] Hojlund, you spend £70 million on bringing him in, so he has to play,” the former South Africa international added.
“So someone’s gotta … and unfortunately for Amad Diallo …the manager goes with the player he thinks he’s probably more capable for, for those type of games tactically, defensively and attacking.”
However, McCarthy insists it was just a matter of time before Diallo delivered, I dealt quite a lot with, and because obviously, we’re both Africans, he would always ask me for anything and advice and wanna work on this… Amad wanted to do finishing all the time … He’s so persistent until he gets one up on you. We were working on finishing all the time and you could see it’s just a matter of time.”
