Ten Hag demands consistency from Antony following Forest performance

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has urged Antony to be more consistent following his superb display in the 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest.

The Brazilian waved his magic wand during the game, spurring his fellow Red Devils to victory with a goal and an assist.

Antony slotted home a rebound after Keylor Navas had parried Anthony Martial’s shot before turning provider with a sumptuous slide rule pass to set up Diogo Dalot for his first Premier League goal.

The 23-year-old has now tallied four goals and one assist in 18 Premier League games since completing his whopping £85 million move from Ajax last summer.

However, his contributions in the Forest clash could prove pivotal in Man United’s top-four hopes as they now sit third in the Premier League, three points ahead of fourth-placed Newcastle United and six above Tottenham Hotspur in fifth.

Ten Hag was impressed by Antony’s performance against Steve Cooper’s relegation-battling Tricky Trees and singled the Brazilian out for praise.

“The goal he scored, he was in the right spot, in the right moment to get the rebound,” said Ten Hag via (the Mirror).

“The second goal was a great team goal – how we built that up, the way Antony did it to bring the pass in the right moment, and the movement from Diogo was fantastic – it was good to see.”

Antony has been accused of failing to justify his huge transfer fee in his debut season for Man United, having notched up eight goals and two assists in all competitions.

Ten Hag then admitted the forward is capable of more before charging him to be consistent with his performances and end product.

“I defended him,” Ten Hag added. “He knows, I know as well, that when you’re a striker, you need an end product.

“But already he had quite a lot of end product – he scored in all competitions now. Eight goals in his first year at Man United is not bad, and there are still games to go.

“But he has to do it. I can’t say in every game, but in many games, if you want to be a top-class player, especially in all the competitions. He has to step up.”

Antony will hope to build on his performance when Man United travel to Sevilla for their Europa League quarter-final tie decider on Thursday.