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Rob DawsonCorresponding
There were two moments against Charlton Athletic on Tuesday Carabao Cup Quarterfinals that summed up Antonyit’s time to Manchester United until here.
The first came in the middle of the first half: he received a pass from fredhe tapped twice and shot into the far corner of the goal with his left foot, putting Man United 1–0 up.
The second came moments later, when he had the chance to help make it 2-0: instead of taking the opportunity to cross with his right foot into the area, he decided to check and retreat. Momentum lost and time for United to start again.
It’s been just over four months since Antony arrived at Old Trafford, the debate over the Brazilian full-back has begun.
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United may not have beaten Charlton, an eventual 3-0 victory, apart from the spectacular intervention in the 21st minute, a superb individual goal made the difference between the teams until Marcus Rashford scored twice in stoppage time. But the groans of some of the fans who greeted every back pass whenever Antony looked uncomfortable with his right foot suggested that United might have been out of sight sooner if Antony had made more of the good positions he came into.
It’s still very early in Antony’s United career, but so far, at least, he’s been dividing opinion.
It shouldn’t have come as a shock to manager Erik ten Hag that Antony is so single-footed after spending two and a half years together at ajaxbut it surprised some fans that United were willing to spend €100m on a player with such an obvious limitation.
It’s the staggering transfer fee – the 13th highest reported fee for a player – that frames many of the arguments about Antony, despite that number being something he couldn’t do anything about.
He told Ajax in January that he wanted to leave in the summer, and United announced themselves early on as a potential destination. Sources tell ESPN that he has been on United’s radar since making his debut in Sao Paulo and interest increased when Ten Hag was appointed as manager.
Ajax initially quoted around €60m, which was considered too high, and when Ten Hag was pressing the issue later in the window, Ajax had already made arrangements to transfer six players – including Lisandro Martinez for United – and were in no hurry to make a deal. But the closer the deadline got, the more Antony began to agitate for a change, and in the end, Ajax rang Man United director of football John Murtough to say they were ready to talk.
The deal struck was €95m in staggered payments and a further €5m in performance-based bonuses, making Antony the fourth most expensive player signed by a British club behind Jack Grealish, Romelu Lukaku and Paulo Pogba. If the fee had been lower, perhaps the scrutiny of Antônio’s early performances would not have been as intense.
United privately accepts that it overpaid, but insists it had its reasons.
Firstly, there weren’t many other options at that position, and although Martinez was one of five left-handed halfbacks they looked at, only three forwards – including Antony – were selected. Secondly, Murtough and the recruitment team were impressed by his desire to join United and thirdly, monitoring of the transfer market suggested that several of Europe’s top clubs would be looking for a similar player in 2023, which only would raise the price. further.
A United source told ESPN: “We pay for the player we think he can become, not what he is now.”
United are hoping Antony will improve, and despite five goals in 16 games early in his England career, Ten Hag was keen to stress that he is not the finished article. At 22, he has time on his side.
“He is a young player that we have to develop, but he has to develop,” said Ten Hag after Antony scored in a 2-1 win over Everton in October. “We have to expect more from him. He needs challenges. That’s why he came to the Premier League. He will step up. In the first few weeks he scored goals, he did good things, but I also see a lot of room for improvement in his game. “
Developing your weakest foot is an obvious starting point.
Arjen Robben has made a career of cutting down the right to score with the left, and Charlton manager Dean Holden admitted after the game on Tuesday that although his defenders had been told about running Antony “on the outside”, they were still powerless to stop what he described as a “world-class finish”.
antonio Valence made over 300 appearances for United and won two Premier League titles without ever really using his left foot, but Antony may find that the field opens up the more confident he is with his right foot.
So far in the Premier League, Antony has had just five successful innings and has yet to record an assist or create a so-called “great chance”, defined as a situation where a player would normally be expected to score. He can argue, however, that it doesn’t matter when you scored against Arsenal and city of manchester. Only Marcus Rashford has scored more goals for United this season.
Against Charlton, Antony delighted and frustrated the crowd in equal measure, and has been the same for much of his season so far. For Ten Hag, the hope is that eventually the good will outweigh the not-so-good and that, over time, €100m will look like money well spent. For now, though, he would likely settle for another goal against City at Old Trafford on Saturday.
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