---
title: "Manchester United: Gabriel Agbonlahor claims Antony needs to mirror Ashley Young"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/manchester-united-gabby-agbonlahor-claims-antony-needs-mirror-ashley-young-mufc-red-devils-ten-hag/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Cameron Winstanley"
section: "Manchester United News"
published: "2023-02-02T20:45:10Z"
modified: "2023-02-02T20:45:10Z"
---

# Manchester United: Gabriel Agbonlahor claims Antony needs to mirror Ashley Young

**[Manchester United](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/manchester-united-news/) winger Antony needs to mirror Ashley Young’s style of play, according to Gabriel Agbonlahor.**

### **The Lowdown: Antony again**

United’s [£81.3m](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/62718027) summer arrival from Ajax has come in for yet more criticism in the aftermath of the Red Devils’ 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest which booked their place at Wembley for the Carabao Cup final.

The 22-year-old played 63 minutes before he was substituted with the score at 0-0, with him only [once](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/antony/leistungsdaten/spieler/602105) completing the 90 minutes in the [Premier League](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/premier-league-news/) since returning from the World Cup.

Having claimed just one assist in 22 games since joining United, his final product has been called into question, with just [two](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/antony/leistungsdatendetails/spieler/602105/plus/0?saison=2022&verein=985&liga=&wettbewerb=&pos=&trainer_id=) cup goals since October showing for his efforts in front of goal.

### **The Latest: Agbonlahor’s comments**

Speaking on [talkSPORT](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJ9suDJZBG0&ab_channel=talkSPORT), former Aston Villa striker Agbonlahor claimed that Antony needs to drop his tricks and find a final product like his former teammate and ex-United winger Young produced, saying:

“I think he’s a bluffer. When he gets the ball, he doesn’t take a player on, he hasn’t got the speed to take players on.

“He doesn’t do what Rashford does. Rashford gets the ball, \[is\] direct, takes players on, gets balls into the box, and the big thing for me is his number of crosses – he’s put one and a half crosses in \[per\] game.

“If you’re a striker, you’re making runs, he’s doing his tricks, he’s cutting in, cutting back, not putting the ball in the box.

“I played with a great winger called Ashley Young, still playing now at 37.

“You always knew he was going to put the ball in, he’d take a player on, do his stepovers, cut back, do his chops, but he’d always put the ball in the right areas.

“For me, Antony is not good enough.”

\[freshpress-quiz id=”418918″\]

### **The Verdict: Needs to develop?**

Antony has so far fallen victim to his price tag and weight of being a United superstar this season, with the flaws in the 22-year-old’s game evidently clear and noticed by Agbonlahor.

His stats this year are hugely underwhelming considering the excitement surrounding his arrival, with him only in the top 49% for dribbles completed amongst wingers over the past year and the bottom 24% for shot-creating actions (via [FBref](https://fbref.com/en/players/99127249/Antony)).

Compare him to former [£15m](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/jun/22/ashley-young-manchester-united-transfer) United man Young, whose greatest output at Villa saw him score nine and assist 14 in the 2007/08 season (via [Premier League](https://www.premierleague.com/players/3062/Ashley-Young/stats?co=1&se=16)), Antony’s current tally is nowhere near good enough.

Therefore, it is hard to argue against Agbonlahor until the Brazilian shows some improvement.