The Dutchman is looking to build a team capable of contending for honours, but he also has an eye on the future with a young defender who plays for Portugal and has caught the eye of United scouts.
|The 18-year-old has enjoyed a strong start to the season in Lisbon and United are taking a keen interest in him. Erik ten Hag’s club are looking for a quality young defender next summer who still has plenty of room for development and Silva fits the bill.
The player’s contract at the Estadio de la Luz runs until 2027, but contains a release clause of around £13m, which Benfica are already trying to negotiate. Benfica will not approve Silva’s sale in January, but the suitors will have a chance next summer.
Any deal is likely to contain a number of bonus clauses for a player that Manchester City star Ruben Dias has high hopes for. It is reported that Dias has already asked his compatriot for a signed jersey, given the expectation around him. Meanwhile, United winger Antony predicted that the Red Devils know how difficult it will be to get a result against Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday night.
He said: “We know it’s going to be a tough and tough game. My colleagues have already told me about this meeting. They said it will be difficult. We have to impose our game, show our strength. We shouldn’t worry and lower our heads for a game. [at City], a result. Unfortunately, we lost the last [league] match but, if you think about it, we have beaten Liverpool and league leaders Arsenal. Our season cannot be summed up in a single match. Now we’re focused on the game against Everton and, God willing, we’ll get the three points”.
Benfica defender Antonio Silva turned heads with an accomplished performance against Paris Saint-Germain when Kylian Mbappe failed to score in their Champions League clash during the week.
Antony also stated that spending hours on the training ground has started to pay off in front of goal. He said: “I have always worked very hard and the results are a consequence of this. I will always give one hundred percent, score or not. It was nice to score another goal [at City] although, unfortunately, we lost the game. He was training that shot the day before the game. I hit between 10 and 15 balls and luckily I was able to score the goal. Now it’s time to prepare and train more, correct mistakes, move in the right direction and achieve great things”.
The Brazilian also gave insight into his own analysis of opposition sides, and how this helped his performances on the pitch, citing his victory over Premier League leaders Arsenal as an example. And he added: “I started studying the Arsenal team. Before training I watched a video with the players. I was thinking about where the space would be, if I came in 15 or 20 minutes and played smart. The coach put me in the starting XI, so I trained even harder. I saw that it was my time and I was very happy to get the opportunity to play and start the game after only a few days. I prepared myself and fought during the game and, thank God, everything went well and I scored a goal. But the most important thing was that the team won.”