Antony & Ajax reach settlement over Man Utd transfer dispute | OneFootball

Former Ajax forward Antony has reached an undisclosed settlement with the Dutch giants after contesting fines of more than £300,000 which he received for missing training sessions before completing his transfer to Manchester United in 2022.

Antony eventually joined United at the end of the summer window for a fee in the region of £86m. Ajax had already rejected multiple bids for their star forward after losing Lisandro Martinez, Sebastien Haller and Ryan Gravenberch in the same summer.

Erik ten Hag, the Dutch coach who had left Ajax for United himself at the start of the off-season, ultimately forced through a move, but Antony missed two matches and three training sessions for the Amsterdam outfit before a deal was done.

Ajax fined Antony on three separate occasions, with increasing sums adding up to €360,000 (£305,000), according to Dutch publication AD.

After initial attempts to reduce the fines went unnoticed, Antony took Ajax to court in January, arguing that the club's then-head coach, Alfred Schreuder, had given him permission to sit out training while the finer details of his move to United were being thrashed out.

Antony's Man Utd tenure left a lot to be desired / Alex Livesey - Danehouse/GettyImages

Crucially, Ajax handed Antony his third and largest fine of €230,000 (£192,000) two days after he claimed that he had been granted permission to travel to England and negotiate with the Premier League club in person.

An independent arbitration committee ruled in February that Ajax's fines had been excessive but couldn't verify if they were "unlawful", as Schreuder had not been reachable. Ultimately, Ajax and Antony have come to an out-of-court settlement.

A club statement on Friday, 7 March read: "Ajax and Antony have reached a settlement in an arbitration case that the former Ajacied had filed against the club. In this procedure, the arbitration committee of the KNVB recently issued an interim ruling, after which Ajax and Antony re-engaged in discussions. This has led to both parties finding a solution that satisfies both the club and the former player. No further details about the settlement will be disclosed.

"Given the positive history between Ajax and the Brazilian attacker, all parties involved are pleased that the arbitration process has come to an end and that they can put this matter behind them."

Antony is still on Manchester United's books but is currently enjoying a rejuvenating loan spell in La Liga with Real Betis.