Paul Scholes accused of being disrespectful to Ajax over Antony transfer

Paul Scholes has been accused of disrespecting Ajax, whilst discussing Antony's potential move from the Eredivisie club to Manchester United.

It's been a long summer of transfer speculation at Old Trafford and things show no signs of slowing down in the last five days of the transfer window.

The most hotly tipped player to move to United, now that the Frenkie de Jong deal looks dead in the water, is Antony, as Erik ten Hag looks to add to his forward options.

Earlier in the week it was reported that the Brazilian has handed in a transfer request at the Johan Cruyff Arena, having previously left out of squads for the team.

Ajax reportedly want more than €90 million euros for the 22-year-old and have so far rejected offers, which has left the player very unhappy, speaking out against the club in a recent interview.

On Saturday, Scholes was in attendance as United beat Southampton 1-0, as they narrowly got away with giving away a penalty, and the United legend claimed he felt 'sorry for the lad,' who wanted to join a 'proper football club,' inferring Ajax weren't one.

"You expect him to want to leave Ajax to come to Manchester United, of course you would," Scholes told BT Sport.

"The manager has done it, a couple of players have done it. I think you have to ignore the money these days, I just think the money is ridiculous for every single player. 

"He looks talented and we can all sit here and say it’s probably a little bit too much for him but as I say I just think is crazy these days.

"I feel a bit for the lad because he obviously wants to come for Manchester United one of the biggest clubs in the world.

"He’s at a good club in Ajax don’t get me wrong but this is where, this a real club, this is a proper football club where he’ll be seen around the world. 

"He’s got great skills and it’s a player that the manager likes, he’s had him. I do feel a little bit sorry for the player but we’ll see what happens."

"The money is just crazy these days and it's stopping players from moving"

"I feel a bit for the lad, he obviously wants to come to United"@rioferdy5, @petercrouch & Paul Scholes discuss whether Ajax winger Antony will end up at Old Trafford this summer 🔴 pic.twitter.com/v0BvSPidN2

— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) August 27, 2022

Football fans were not happy with the England international's words, with one saying, "Yeah, Paul. Ajax have only won *checks notes* FOUR EUROPEAN CUPS."

Another added, "One club is in the UCL the other is planning trips to Moldova & Cyprus! I understand Antony wants United but these British pundits are so clueless yet again."

"What arrogance! So according to Scholes, Ajax is not a 'proper football club,'" a third said.

The irony that United even appointed Ajax's manager was pointed out by one fan, who said, "Ajax is one of the best run clubs on the planet. period, so much so that United hired their old coach to rebuild the club. Scholes is a moron."

Scholes did also bring up the possibility that the deal for Antony might be too expensive, considering his output whilst playing in the Netherlands, "The one thing I would say is is he good enough? He’s not scored that many goals in the Dutch league or made that many assists," the former midfielder added.

“It’s not a lot in the Dutch league, it’ll be a lot harder over here. The Dutch league is much easier tan over here. We’ve seen that and he’ll be tested over here if he comes."