Before Manchester United called, Antony, whose full name is Antony Matheus dos Santos, would only play at the stadium once more.
After Ajax turned down United’s first three proposals, they finally gave up this week, selling the 22-year-old for £81.3 million plus a further £4.2 million in add-ons.
On Monday, Antony and his four delegates took a plane to Manchester. Junior Pedroso, his agent, shared a photo from inside a private jet on Instagram. The caption said, “Behind the scenes on an incredible day.”
Growing up in the notoriously dangerous favelas of Osasco, São Paulo, where life standards are low and crime rates are high, Antony could only dream of such luxury.
Although Antony used to play football in dusty local fields, he had a deep love for the game, his parents could not afford to buy him boots. He frequently went without meals, and on occasion he had to wake up early to assist his parents in pumping water out of their flooded flat.
When Antony was six years old, his aunt and uncle began taking him to São Paulo games. At nine years old, he enrolled in São Paulo’s academy, Cotia, but the young attacker did not look good at first. Three times the club nearly let him go, but he persisted and, at the age of 18, earned his debut for the main team.
The next year, when Antony was chosen for the 2019 Copa São Paulo, a youth competition, his career took a dramatic change.
Originally planning to travel to the United States for the first team’s preseason trip, Antony was convinced to play with the youth squad instead, and it turned out to be a wise choice. The scouts from Ajax, Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, Nice, and Everton were made aware of his potential when he scored four goals and assisted six more.
In the summer of 2019, São Paulo turned down a bid of €20 million (now £17.3 million) from a European club; nonetheless, they transferred him to Ajax for €21.75 million a year later. Due to São Paulo’s £25 million debt, Antony chose not to take home his $1.5 million (£1.3 million) bonus.
Not everyone in Amsterdam was happy to see Antony arrive. The legendary Marco van Basten of Holland commented, “It’s ridiculous that they are going to buy a youth player from Brazil for more than €20 million.”
Van Basten’s comments were eaten up by Antony. The Brazilian left-footed player wowed the Ajax supporters with some daring stunts, including a 360-degree spin while the ball was stuck inside his left boot.
He helped Erik ten Hag win his second Eredivisie in his debut season by scoring nine goals and setting up eight more.
Ten Hag would try to sign some of his old teammates, Ajax realized. However, they never anticipated making £55 million from Lisandro Martínez’s transfer, and some club employees believed Antony would only get £50–60 million instead of £85.5 million.
With nine Brazil caps under his belt, it is evident that United overpaid for Antony in this regard, yet the team maintains that they have acquired one of the top young attacking prospects in Europe.
If Antony is able to impress the Old Trafford audience in the same way that he did at Ajax, then United will view his signing as a wise move.
How Ten Hag intends to integrate him into the squad is evident. As was the case at Ajax, Antony will be employed as an inverted right winger. The right-footed Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho will battle it out for left wing. Ten Hag is certain that Rashford can play there as well, but the choices for leading the attack are Anthony Martial and Cristiano Ronaldo.
At United, Antony will run into some familiar acquaintances. He was close friends with Martínez throughout his two years at Ajax, and he knew Casemiro from their time together in the São Paulo academy. Because of his aggressive performances, the Argentina defender has swiftly grown to be a fan favorite at Old Trafford, and Antony believes their mindsets are similar.