Would Gakpo or Antony be better for Manchester United? It depends on whether Ronaldo leaves

Manchester United desperately need to increase the quality in the attacking phase, which is why they have been trying to bring Antony in for practically the whole summer, while in case of failure Cody Gakpo should become an alternative. But who would be the better reinforcement for the Red Devils?

Erik ten Hag logically prefers Antony, with whom he already worked at Ajax. However, a number of mainstays have already left the Dutch side and especially the current coach Alfred Schreuder doesn’t like it at all. His team would lose competitiveness.

At the end of July, however, perhaps because Ajax had counted on the departure of the Brazilian winger, they brought Francisco Conceiça from Porto for the same position.

Only, the Amsterdam side want too big a sum for their gem, which Manchester United are not willing to pay for the 22-year-old winger. That’s also why his courtship is dragging on so long.

Ronaldo will stay

If Cristiano Ronaldo were to stay at Old Trafford, the Hag would have two strikers at his disposal. The Portuguese hitman and Anthony Martial. Marcus Rashford can also start on the spearhead, as we had the chance to see in the last game against Liverpool. He scored a goal there.

So the arrival of Antony definitely makes sense, since he is typologically similar to Jadon Sancho, only he is a left-footed player and he is faster. The Dutch coach could then rotate Sancho on the left and right side as needed.

Ronaldo will leave

But if the star Portuguese leaves, then Cody Gakpo is ready to strengthen Manchester United, according to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano. There should be no stopping this transfer.

The Dutch winger, who most often plays on the left side, is both taller (189 cm), stronger and bigger. It is Gakpo who could start at the tip of the attack, where he could rotate with Martial, while offering something different again than the French striker, who is trying to restart his career at Old Trafford, which has been hampered by injury so far.

Furthermore, the Eindhoven native, who spent the last Euro game against the Czech Republic on the bench, will not be nearly as expensive as Antony, reducing the risk of a potential setback.

Of course, it could all end up with Manchester United failing to come to an agreement with Ajax and bringing in Gakpo, with Ronaldo staying as well. That might not be a problem either, as all the aforementioned wingers are very variable in where they start, and Ten Hag would still have many options to make up an attacking trio.

Source: Manchester United, Transfermarkt