Manchester United has put an unexpected proposal on the table in order to definitively close Antony's exit: offering Jesus Rodriguez as part of a possible swap with Real Betis. The English club, aware that the Verdiblancos cannot afford the €50 million demanded for the Brazilian, wants to include the young Betis talent in the deal to lower the cost and facilitate an agreement that benefits both parties.
Antony has regained his form in Heliópolis. His loan to Betis has allowed him to enjoy football again and achieve positive numbers: five goals and four assists in just 17 matches that have helped Pellegrini's team stay in the Champions League race. This improvement has convinced the Andalusian board, who dream of keeping the winger beyond June. However, the price set by United makes it a challenging operation.
This is where the name Jesus Rodriguez comes in. The 19-year-old, a Spanish U21 international, has piqued the interest of the Red Devils, who see him as a future investment. His talent and potential have made him one of the most promising gems in the Betis youth academy, to the extent that many at the club compare him to historical figures like Joaquín.
The operation, however, is far from simple. Betis knows that parting with Jesus could jeopardize part of the long-term project, and Pellegrini is not willing to let him go without a fight. The final word has not been spoken yet, but the Antony-Jesus exchange promises to become one of the most intense negotiations of the summer.
Antony is expected to return to Manchester United when his loan spell at Real Betis ends at the conclusion of the season. Betis do not have an option to make his move permanent, but United could be open to parting ways with the Brazilian winger after his struggles in Manchester. Since arriving at Old Trafford from Ajax in 2022, Antony has scored just 12 goals and provided five assists in 96 appearances in a Reds shirt.
However, his move to Spain has so far looked to have paid off. Betis head coach Manuel Pellegrini has been pleased with the winger’s contributions and has admitted he’d like Antony to stay at the club. "I see Antony very involved in the team, in the group, in the institution," Pellegrini said. "We would all be happy if he stayed, but now we have to focus on the present."
A report from Football365 claims that United have 'asked' for one of Antony’s teammates as part of a potential player swap deal. It United have 'proposed' a swap deal in order to bring in 19-year-old winger Jesus Rodriguez to Old Trafford. The Betis academy product broke into the first team this season, making his debut in a 2-0 defeat to Real Sociedad in December.
Since then, he has started 11 La Liga matches and has featured regularly in the Conference League. Given the youngster is seen as a future prospect, it remains to be seen whether Betis would be willing to sacrifice Rodriguez to sign Antony permanently. Pellegrini has already made it clear that he hopes to count on the rising star for many more seasons.
Reports in Spain earlier this month claimed that Betis were looking to offer Rodriguez a new contract, increasing both his release clause and salary. Manchester United are increasingly open to allowing Real Betis to complete the signing of Antony this summer, though the Red Devils are desperate to discuss a reduced fee if LaLiga side allow one of their best players to move the other way.
The Brazilian winger moved to Andalusia in January in a bid to recapture his old form. Having initially joined Manchester United for a fee that would eventually top £86m (€100m, $111m) back in summer 2022, the Red Devils rarely saw any signs of why they had shelled out the second-biggest fee in their history.
Thankfully, for all parties, the move to join the Heliópolis has paid rich dividends, with Antony now having contributed towards nine goals (five scored, four assists) in 17 appearances for Real Betis – form which has helped push Manuel Pellegrini’s side to within a point of the Champions League places in LaLiga.
Qualification to Europe’s premier competition will certainly aid Betis’ chances of signing Antony on a permanent basis, although United’s valuation of the player – currently set for around €50m (£42.8m, $57m) – is well beyond their reach.
However, with several high-profile figures at Betis having already made clear their plans to keep Antony around into next season and beyond, those hopes have now increased off the back of new Man Utd interest in one of their own players, with Jesus Rodriguez wanted by Ruben Amorim as part of any deal.
And according to ElNacional, United have now ‘proposed’ for the 19-year-old winger to be included as part of any deal for Antony and could allow Betis to complete a ‘discounted transfer’ for the Brazilian if the Spain Under-21 international moves in the opposite direction.
The report claims the proposal leaves Betis with a ‘big question’ over whether they’re willing to ‘sacrifice Jesus’, with many at the club believing he ‘could be a legend like Joaquin Sanchez’. And in order to get a deal done, the Betis board would need to convince coach Pellegrini to let his prodigious young star leave, with the coach ‘having made it very clear throughout that he hopes to continue counting on Rodríguez for much longer.
Betis’ desire to keep Antony at the Estadio Benito Villamarin could ultimately prove the trump card. Their sporting director Manu Fajardo said recently: “Here, we work on devalued players, analysing data from players who have reached very high moments and peaks, but who for various reasons have significantly decreased their performances. In Antony’s case, he has performed since minute one at Betis.”
Real Betis star Isco added: “We hope that Antony will remain at the club, but in football, nothing can be taken for granted. We need to do crowdfunding to bring Antony in!” Pellegrini also admits he’s loved what he has seen so far from Antony and feels he’s a player who has started to justify the enormous fee United shelled out for him in the first place.
“He is a very special player, it is not a coincidence when €100m (£86m) are paid for a player. He arrived with the conviction that he had to mature,” Pellegrini stated last month. “He has more than enough conditions; more than demonstrating his ability, he is demonstrating his functionality and his capacity to be a practical player. Now he is more focused on finishing the play, on taking crosses… He is showing a lot of humility and accepting the challenge of evolving in his career because he is still very young.”
Antony himself has admitted he is loving life in LaLiga and the south of Spain. “I am very happy here, but I do not know what will happen in the future,” he said. “I always say that I enjoy every day, with the club, the city, everything, and I give my best for the team. It is still too early to talk about my future.”
Meanwhile, from a United end, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has made it clear that Antony has no future at Old Trafford and they are only willing to discuss his sale this summer, rather than green-lighting a second stint away on loan.
