Sport

Real Betis star says club needs ‘crowdfunding’ to keep controversial Manchester United loanee

Would you let him go?

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 31st March 2025

Real Betis fans, players, and staff alike have become quite taken with Manchester United loanee Antony following his move to the Spanish club back in January, so much so that first-team star Isco has called for a crowdfunder to keep him there permanently.

Since arriving at the start of the year, the Brazilian winger has gone on to score four and assist just as many in 12 games across all competitions, which is quite the return compared to just a dozen goals in nearly a century of appearances for Man United.

Whilst the former Real Madrid midfielder was only being half-serious, as hit stats since joining the Seville-based side speak for themselves, he couldn’t have been more sincere in his hopes of keeping Antony at the club for “at least another year.”

Speaking to DAZN following a huge win in the Seville derby – the club’s first victory against Sevilla in the league since 2018 – Isco made it abundantly clear that he and the rest of the team want and need his new attacking partner to stay.

The 32-year-old, who has linked up with Antony on a number of occasions already, told reporters: “We have to crowdfund so he can stay at least another year. We’ve noticed a change since he arrived – he brings us a lot.”

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Betis might not be the biggest or wealthiest club in Spain, but remaining within the European places (currently sixth) could prove crucial to their spending this summer, with making Antony’s loan permanent or at least extending further undoubtedly top of the list given the impact he’s had since arriving.

Nevertheless, the biggest problem when it comes to potentially buying the 25-year-old is his salary, as the £86 million signing from Ajax brought to Old Trafford by Erik ten Hag is said to be earning in excess of £100,000 a week.

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At present, Real Betis are said to be covering 84% of his wages, and while he’s definitely been worth the financial outlay so far, securing his services full-time could prove fairly tricky and/or costly.

His time at United hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing, as not only were there big questions marks around his price tag from the off, but he’s been a divisive member of the squad, to say the least.

Not only has he struggled to make a regular impact in the Premier League goal with just one goal and three assists since his arrival back in September 2022, but he’s also been ridiculed for some of his ‘unnecessary’ antics. Meanwhile, he’s looked like a player reborn at Betis:

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Fellow first-team talisman Isco went on to add, “I’m happy to have Antony here. He’s surprised us all with his humility and desire to help.”

Both he and Betis are said to have made it expressly clear that they’d like for his future to remain at the Villamarin Stadium, and it’s fair to say that plenty of United fans wouldn’t mind cashing in on him if possible – some probably more keen than others.

It’s also worth noting that Antony was embroiled in another controversy after being accused of domestic assault, though the charges were ultimately dropped back in August 2024.

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Regardless, what supporters make of him is largely irrelevant at this point, as head coach Ruben Amorim will be looking to rebuild the squad with players of his choosing as much as possible come the summer.

That being said, the club has warned that incomings during the transfer window are dependent on sales, meaning letting Antony could make sense for all parties involved, as United are likely looking to better balance their books following Jim Ratcliffe’s revelations regarding the state of their finances.

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What do you think, Reds? Would you sell him, or are you hoping he brings that form back to Manchester?

Unfortunately, Betis fans, we’re not sure where a crowdfunder would fit in with FFP and PSR rules, so you might just have to hope United and Antony are willing to play ball.

Isco and Antony were two of Real Betis’ biggest threats against Sevilla.

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Featured Images — DAZN (screenshot)/Ardfern (via Wikimedia Commons)

Sport

Academy graduate Oscar Bobb is leaving Manchester City on a permanent transfer

Danny Jones Danny Jones Oscar Bobb leaving Man City for Fulham done deal

Manchester City youth academy graduate Oscar Bobb is leaving the club after sealing a move to Fulham FC.

Despite plenty of loan interest throughout the January transfer window, the Man City attacker has secured a switch to the in-form West London team on a permanent basis.

Bobb looked increasingly likely to leave in some capacity following the arrival of another winger in the form of instant hit, Antoine Semenyo, but it now looks as though his departure is all but confirmed, bar an imminent official announcement.

As reported by Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, the agreement has now been reached between the two clubs pending a full medical today (Thursday, 29 January).

According to Romano, Fulham will pay Man City approximately £27 million for Bobb’s services, who becomes the latest addition in what has already been a fairly busy period of recruitment.

He goes on to add that “City also mantain [a] 20% sell-on clause, matching rights and future control on the player based on his decision.”

There is no suggestion of a buy-back clause at this time, but given his age and having already made a fair few appearances for Pep Guardiola‘s first team, it wouldn’t be beyond the realms of possibility to see him return to the club one day.

Bobb also arrives at Craven Cottage following the exit of multiple wingers and offensive options, including Adama Traore, ex-Man United product Andreas Pereira and Arsenal youngster, Reiss Nelson, whose loan deal has expired and has signed another temporary deal at local rivals, Brentford.

A similar scenario played out with James Trafford at the start of this season, though it now looks as though the young keeper could once again leave before the end of the month. Many City supporters understandably have some mixed feelings about both situations.

The young Norwegian winger joined the Etihad Campus back in 2023 and went on to contribute a handful of goals and assists, despite limited appearances and some very unfortunate injury issues.

Only seven months ago, his soon-to-be former parent club released a short video charting his return from the sidelines after fracturing his leg – a setback which kept him out for roughly five months.

Plenty of fans have quickly placed him in the so-called ‘what if?’ category of players, and given that he’s still just 22 years old and has already impressed on a number of ocassions for such a big club, we wouldn’t be surprised if he goes on to have a very exciting career.

Can you see the Blues bringing in or letting anyone else go before deadline day?

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Featured Images — pantkiewicz (via Flickr)/El Loko (via WikiCommons)/Man City (via YouTube)

Sport

Tyson Fury has officially revealed his comeback fight after coming out of ‘retirement’ once again

Danny Jones Danny Jones

Tyson Fury has officially announced the opponent for his comeback fight after yet again returning to professional boxing.

Fury supposedly ‘retired’ for seemingly the umpteenth time last January following his second defeat to Oleksandr Usyk the month prior, and some even believed it might have actually been his final outing.

Nevertheless, ‘The Gypsy King’ said he was coming out of retirement once more earlier this year, and now his next match-up has been confirmed.

Revealing the other contender as Aslanbek Makhmudo, the fight will be aired live on Netflix only.

Partnered exclusively with boxing magazine, Ring, the bout between Fury and Makhmudo is the latest big fight night to be picked up by the streaming giants.

The most recent example was, obviously, Anthony Joshua’s brutal knockout of influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul this past December.

Makhmudo, just a year younger than his opposite number, is a fellow experienced heavyweight based mainly out of Canada with a decent pedigree of his own.

The Russian, simply known as ‘The Lion’, has a record of 21 wins – more than half of those coming by KO.

With that in mind, he presents a potentially exciting prospect for the famous Manchester fighter, who hasn’t won a proper competitive fight since the defence of his WBC belt against Derek Chisora in December 2022.

Similarly, this should at least see two very well-seasoned pros going head to head.

He did fight MMA veteran Francis Ngannou in a one-off exhibition, but there was no title or anything tangible on the line.

In fact, even Fury himself admitted it was a “below par” showing.

Many fight fans would argue that there haven’t been enough proper big heavyweight dates since Fury vs Usyk, and even then, we are still yet to get a date for the all-but fully confirmed final fight of the trilogy.

Fury himself did state that the conclusion of their clash is scheduled for this April, but nothing official has been set in stone by any promotion or venue and the new date means it’s even less likely to be any time soon; meanwhile, plenty are still hoping for AJ vs Fury.

The 37-year-old will take on Makhmudo on Saturday, 11 April, and you can bet the world will be watching.

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Featured Images — FurociTV (via YouTube)/Netflix/Ring Magazine/@Mike_DiDomizio(via X)

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