‘A fresh start for one of the worst signings in Man Utd history’

By its very nature, labelling something the best, or worst, of anything that has a history of almost 150 years is not an exact science.

Most people are unable to compare the merits of that entity to what it was a century and a half ago, much less comprehend what it was like then.

However, if Antony’s name is advanced in a debate over the worst transfer deal Manchester United has ever made, there are likely to be few people who disagree.

The young Brazilian forward, who spoke of his backstory with three English journalists in Los Angeles last summer, is in some ways extremely harsh.

As Antony described the hardships he faced as a child, the danger that many of his friends were facing, and why he had the word “favela” engraved in his boots, it was impossible not to be moved.

By any measure, the 24-year-old’s personal tale is a success story. It was amazing how he explained to himself why he had accomplished far too much to allow those who criticised his football to become so sensitive to his emotions.

However, it is impossible to conclude that he has been anything other than a failure if you can separate his history from his role as a Manchester United player.

That in itself, is not a reason to condemn. Every club has made mistakes-making decisions. It is Antony’s misfortune that there is an extra layer. His price tag.

According to United sources, Antonio is on the verge of signing for Real Betis on loan until the end of the season, which will pay at least 84% of his weekly wages, which are over £100,000.

You almost have to look at the price of Antony when you are reminded of how much it cost the club when United co-chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe has ordered a cost cutting exercise that has resulted in ticket prices rising, 250 people losing their jobs, staff benefits being terminated, legends receiving their remuneration being cut, and fans being sent letters warning the club is in danger of breaking profit and sustainability rules.

When United confirmed they had reached an agreement with Ajax for the winger in August 2022, they were gushing with pride.

The fee? £81.3m, second behind Paul Pogba as United’s most expensive player. It was the fourth highest transfer fee a Premier League team ever paid at the time.

In justifying it, United pumped out a lot of information.

Antony was a priority signing for new manager Erik ten Hag, they explained. The pair had collaborated at Ajax, and the relationship had persisted throughout the summer. Ajax, it was claimed, had played hard ball, but Antony was as keen for the deal to go through as United were.

Prior to Ten Hag’s arrival, he had a lot of technical skill, and a winning mindset. pushed for their man until they were finally successful.

Before Ten Hag arrived, he was undoubtedly on their radar. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, his predecessor, was informed of him. He would have been accepted by the Norwegian. However, he advised against paying more than £30 million.

Still, when Antony became the first United player in 50 years to score in their first three league appearances, it looked like a good deal.

No one was aware that his initial burst would account for 25% of his league goals, according to the time.

In 96 United appearances to date, Antony has scored 12 goals and claimed five assists.

In the previous, he scored once in the 7-0 EFL Cup victory over League One Barnsley on September 17th. In a shocking 4-3 defeat at Chelsea, he crossed for Alejandro Garnacho to net United’s third goal the previous time.

Ten Hag backed the player for a long time because he knew Antony was known as his man.

Ten Hag was still offering his support 18 months after his arrival, at a point where it was becoming clear that Antony may not have scored or created a goal for nine months and that the majority of observers were beginning to notice.

“He can do so much better”, he said, in a press conference on 12 January 2024.

His Ajax final product was “very high.” He should return to those levels. He is capable of it.

In that media briefing, Ten Hag also mentioned a legal dispute that resulted in Antony being expelled from the Brazil national team following assault allegations against him. No charges were brought against Brazil until the end of August 2024. Antonio has always refuted these assertions.

Yet he kept giving the impression that he was insufficient to perform at the level that was demanded of him repeatedly.

After Ten Hag was replaced by Ruben Amorim in the first recorded training session, Antony was depicted playing right wing back. But when it came to Amorim’s first game in charge at Ipswich on 24 November, Antony was an unused substitute.

He has made nine appearances under the Portuguese. The bench of substitutes has been used by the substitutes, with two exceptions. He played in 60 minutes of matches for Amorim, which is the most of his career.

He played 90 minutes of his final game against Barnsley in the win. Since Ten Hag’s disastrous 4-0 defeat at Crystal Palace on May 6, which came dangerously close to costing him his job, he has not started in the Premier League.

After being introduced as a half-time substitute for United at home against Southampton on January 16 when the team had lost just one Premier League game all season, Antony was given the job.

He only needed to connect properly and advance the ball in front of the far post before scoring. Instead of letting it go to Saints goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who picked it up and proceeded with the game, he turned it back. The effort would have gone too far, according to TV replays, even if Ramsdale had not intervened.

It was a terrible miss that social media users had to watch out for the rest of the world. No-one who regularly watches United was that surprised, which is what is really sad about.

Antony needed a fresh start. He is anticipated to relearn his career somewhere else.