One of the stars of the show at Ajax Amsterdam, it wasn’t a surprise to see Antony linked very quickly with a move to Manchester United when Erik ten Hag took over.
After a long set of negotiations with the Eredivisie side, the Red Devils eventually got their man, signing him for around €100m in a deal that made a lot of people happy, including the Brazilian.
He repaid that by scoring soon after on his full debut against Arsenal, and has continued to impress since, showing why Manchester United were prepared to spend that much money on him.
In fact, according to Italian agent Sabatino Durante, speaking to Radio Marte, the winger had been followed by the Premier League side for a few years now.
Relayed by Area Napoli, he said: “Manchester United had wanted Antony for a long time, even before he arrived in the Netherlands. I met with scouts of the Red Devils confirming that the boy has been liked for several seasons.”
The Nigeria International never made the move, however, with him still the star of the show in Naples when fit, scoring for fun and attracting a lot of attention.
Durante continued: “Why were they looking at both [Antony] and Victor Osimhen? I don’t know if that’s the case, because we’re talking about two very different players. Who is better than the other? Antony has a completely different foot, especially his left foot.
“Technically, there is no story. Osimhen is another player, an ‘animal’ with great physicality, while he has to improve on a technical level.”
Prior to his move to Manchester United, Antony had scored 24 goals and assisted another 22 in 82 appearances for Ajax.
