At a time when United co-chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe has ordered a cost slashing exercise that has seen ticket prices rise, 250 people lose their jobs, staff perks axed, Sir Alex Ferguson’s status as a paid ambassador revoked, legends have their remuneration cut and fans sent a letter warning the club is in danger of breaching profit and sustainability rules, you almost have to blink and look again when reminded of how much Antony cost.
United were gushing with pride in August 2022 when they confirmed they had struck a deal with Ajax for the winger.
The fee? £81.3m, second behind Paul Pogba as United’s most expensive player. At the time, it was the fourth highest transfer fee paid by a Premier League club.
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 worked together at Ajax and the pursuit had lasted all summer. Ajax, it was claimed, had played hard ball, but Antony was as keen for the deal to go through as United were.
He was high on the scouting radar before Ten Hag arrived, had a lot of technical ability and a winning mentality. United pushed and eventually got their man.
He certainly had been on their radar before Ten Hag arrived. His predecessor Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was told about him. The Norwegian would have accepted him. But his advice was not to pay more than £30m.
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 to know at the time that initial burst would represent 25% of the league goals he would score.
In 96 United appearances to date, Antony has scored 12 goals and claimed five assists.
The last time he found the net was in a 7-0 EFL Cup victory over League One Barnsley on 17 September. The last time he helped someone to score was on 4 April 2024, when he crossed for Alejandro Garnacho to net United’s third in what turned out to be a dramatic 4-3 defeat at Chelsea.
Knowing Antony was regarded as his man, Ten Hag backed the player for a long time.
Eighteen months after his arrival, at a point where he had not scored or created a goal for nine months and it was becoming obvious to most observers Antony may be well short of the standard United required, Ten Hag was still offering his support.
“He can do so much better,” he said, in a press conference on 12 January 2024.
“His end product at Ajax was very high. He should return to those levels. He is capable of doing it.”
Ten Hag also made reference in that media briefing to a legal case that saw Antony dropped from the Brazil national squad after assault allegations were made against him. Police investigations in Brazil concluded in August 2024 with no charges being brought. Antony has always denied the claims.
Ten Hag said the case had a negative impact on the winger, which given the gravity of what he was facing, is understandable.
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