Man Utd hit Antony sale snag as ruling prevents Real Betis from repeating 'Fekir method'

Real Betis may be unable to sign star Antony this summer as a new rule means they can no longer spread transfer fees over several years. Antony has been a revelation since moving to Betis

Yet the ruling has damaged their dreams of him remaining in Betis colours. The La Liga side have frequently taken advantage of the regulation, most notably with their ex-French star Nabil Fekir, whose fee to former club Lyon was spread over seven years.

Part of the amortisation was even still pending when Fekir left Betis last summer for Emirati side Al Jazira. Reports now suggest that are aiming to recoup at least around £40million of the £81m they initially paid Ajax for

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However, Betis could struggle to stump up such cash as the rule allowing clubs to split the cost, a process they would have looked at to secure Antony, has now been changed by President Javier Tebas. This is a bid to align with UEFA's rules that limit instalment payments to a maximum of five seasons for clubs that do not exceed their limits.

Betis agreed a £16.7m, plus £8.5m in variables, with Lyon to bring Fekir to the club in 2019. This amount was initially planned to be paid over four seasons, with the player signing until 2023.

Yet in January 2022, Fekir extended his contract by three more seasons until 2026, allowing Betis to spread the cost over more years, which became seven in total.

The new rule would have prevented a situation where, as Fekir left last Betis summer with around £5.9m still left to be paid to Lyon, this was almost covered by the fee paid by the UAE side.

Antony, 25, has been one of the key factors in Betis' resurgence in the second half of this season. The impact of the Brazilian winger has been spectacular, bagging five goals and four assists in 17 games as they now sit sixth in the table and are in the Europa Conference semi-finals, where they are set to face Fiorentina this week.

Those at Betis are optimistic about him staying, with the club's CEO, Ramon Alarcon, revealing that the player tells him every morning that he wants to stay.

Yet it's likely the club will have to perform another exercise in financial engineering, using creativity and resources to convince United to part with the star, who is contracted at Old Trafford until 2027. It's also believed that United do not want to sanction another loan for the former Ajax man.

Antony's loan fee has only cost Betis £1m net, as they cover a portion of his salary. Bonuses will be paid if they reach the or win the Conference League, however.

Despite their issues surrounding a permanent move, Betis chief Manu Fajardo confirmed over the weekend that the club were determined to find a way to keep the player.

He said: "It is a source of satisfaction on a personal level [to have brought Antony to Real Betis], but it is the result of teamwork. Although I am responsible for the sporting management, there are many people involved in this signing. It’s still early, but we will try in different ways to do everything possible to continue enjoying Antony."

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