Antony is expected to be given the green light by Manchester United to head out on loan during the January transfer window and his long-term future at Old Trafford is also in doubt
It all started so well.
And perhaps that’s the most peculiar thing about the curious case of Antony and Manchester United. The 24-year-old attacker hit the ground running after his blockbuster transfer from Ajax, scoring in each of his first three Premier League matches.
But the goals quickly dried up. The dancing feet that went viral on social media in the build-up to his move became erratic and cumbersome. It was clear as early as the second half of the 2022-23 season that the Brazilian was not the transformative £85million signing that he had been billed as just months earlier.
Nothing has changed over the last two years. And despite the player’s admirable stance in recent transfer windows of wanting to stay and fight for his place, it seems, mercifully, that he will be get some respite in the coming months on loan at Real Betis.
Rehabilitation is desperately needed for a player who caught light in the Eredivisie under Erik ten Hag but wilted under the bright lights of the Premier League, amassing just 17 goal contributions across his two-and-a-half seasons playing in red.
And when you strip away the cheap tricks, the showman that bamboozled defenders in Holland has largely been predictable and ineffective on the ball for United.
Antony was called out by United legend Paul Scholes for his showboating during his debut season, with the former midfielder branding him a “one-trick pony”. It was deemed brutal at the time.
“I love a little bit of showboating, and entertainment but at least get the pass right,” Scholes said back in October in the aftermath of United’s win against Sheriff Tiraspol in the Europa League.
“This country, any country even Brazil. They don’t want to see that do they? I like to see skills and entertainment, I just don’t think it’s skill or entertainment – it’s just being a clown.”
It’s more about what we haven’t seen from Antony, though, which is the issue. If we’re being blunt, the reason he has failed to replicate his Eredivisie form on these shores is, quite simply, the gulf in class between his old home and the Premier League. Ten Hag himself and some of his other signings are further proof of that.
And while he’s far from the only player who has failed to live up to expectations at Old Trafford in recent years, Antony has become the poster boy of the club’s shoddy recruitment strategy due to that inflated transfer fee.
It has come as no surprise to see Antony lurch down the Old Trafford pecking order over the last 18 months. The writing was on the wall when Alejandro Garnacho surpassed him under Ten Hag, who was so often his biggest advocate. The subsequent emergence of Amad was seen by many as the death knell on Antony’s Manchester United career, particular given his only goal contributions until mid-March of last season were registered against Newport County of League Two in the FA Cup.
His move to La Liga is a straight loan. But option or not, it’s hard to see any way back for him under Ruben Amorim. The Portuguese coach does not operate with orthodox widemen, though some may argue Antony’s diligent work off the ball could lend himself well to the wing-back role.
But Antony has had his chances. Even Ten Hag seemed to give up on him in the end. And if could do that after making him a star at Ajax, then there’s no reason for Ineos or Amorim to persevere with him.
A permanent parting of the ways seems like a no-brainer. Yes, that will involve financial pain for all involved. But a clean break would do all parties a favour – and maybe that’s worth paying for.
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