Antony warned “he will have to learn the hard way” if he doesn’t change at Man Utd
Roy Keane has warned Manchester United star Antony that he will be “targeted” by opponents due to his flamboyant playing style.
Antony brought his trick-heavy Brazilian approach to the wing when he joined United in a £85.5million transfer from Ajax in the summer. The 23-year-old has not been shy to bring out the step-overs and showboating while playing for Erik ten Hag’s side this season.
He has contributed six goals and four assists in 26 appearances across all competitions so far. His talent was clear when he scored the crucial goal in United’s 2-1 win over Barcelona in the second leg of their Europa League knockout clash last week.
But United legend Keane is concerned that he could suffer a serious injury because his tricky style provokes opponents. “I think he will have to learn the hard way,” Keane said on ITV ahead of United’s 3-1 win over West Ham in the FA Cup on Wednesday night.
“Players have targeted him. We saw that at the weekend, where he is trying to make a fool of people and players have tried to go through the back of him, so he will have to learn quickly otherwise he will pick up more injuries.”
Antony has missed nine matches for United this season through injuries already this season. And Keane is not the first former United player to question the winger’s sometimes casual approach to the game.
Back in October, the Brazilian was slammed by United club legend Paul Scholes after he performed his trademark spin on the ball during a 3-0 win over Sheriff Tiraspol in the Europa League. “Does that do anything for anybody?” Scholes said.
“Does that do anything for himself? I’d have to ask him – even at 4-0 up what does that do for you?”
Former Premier League striker Darren Bent described Antony as a “YouTube footballer” in January after a run of ineffectual performances that had Rio Ferdinand exasperated at his inability to go past defenders.
“All tricks and flicks, no substance at the minute,” Bent said on talkSPORT. “He’s doing all this stuff but he’s not going past anyone. It’s not like he’s doing a trick to manipulate the ball to go past someone, he’s just doing it for the sake of it. A little bit like the spin, at the time I was like ‘ah come on it’s only a spin’.”
Bent was then asked if Antony was a “YouTube footballer”. He replied: “A little bit, yeah. You clip all the best bits of a footballer and you look at it on YouTube and go ‘wow, I can’t believe we’re signing him!’ But where’s the substance in between, where’s the end product?”
Antony is under pressure for his place on the wing ahead of United’s game against Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, with Alejandro Garnacho and Jadon Sancho in form.
