Antony has to start acting like a $85 million superstar for Man Utd.
The Brazilian winger has tremendous skill, but he frequently presents a one-dimensional performance. United supporters are still waiting for him to reach his full potential.
The second-most expensive player in club history and the fifteenth-most expensive player in football history, Antony is the most expensive player on the Manchester United roster. Despite this, he hasn’t had an assist in the English top flight or scored a goal in the Premier League in six months.
In fact, in only two outings for Ajax in the Dutch Eredivisie this season, he has made as many direct goal contributions (assists plus goals) to the league as he did for United in 17 games.
These are troubling numbers, even if Antony had been a free transfer or an academy graduate.
Wout Weghorst joined United on loan for free, and many people have criticized him for the meager number of goals he has scored while wearing the club’s jersey.
It is even more perplexing when you know that Antony cost around £85 million ($106 million), burning a significant hole in United’s transfer budget and leaving them with little money for long-term additions in January.
It’s interesting to analyze Antony as a player since there seems to be a big discrepancy between how highly he is regarded by both his club and his country and his performance on the field.
Despite not exactly having stellar statistics, he was an important member of Ten Hag’s last two Eredivisie championship teams at Ajax.
Although 27 players in the league scored as many goals as he did or more than him, his eight goals during the 2021–22 season were still respectable for a winger. Additionally, he assisted four players, totaling 40 in the Dutch top division.