Antony was exiled by Ruben Amorim in the weeks leading up to his Manchester United exit and the Brazil winger has now hit out at how he was treated before re-joining Real Betis
Antony has hit out at the treatment he received after being frozen out by Manchester United, accusing the club of showing a “lack of respect” and “rudeness” in his final days at Old Trafford.
The Brazil winger spent the second half of last season on loan at Real Betis and made no secret of his desire to make a permanent return to the La Liga outfit during the summer. But he had to wait until the final days of the transfer window to get his wish and was effectively exiled by Ruben Amorim in the meantime, being forced to train away from the first-team squad as well as being excluded from the club’s pre-season friendlies.
And Antony believes that the club’s approach to him and other the players in the United ‘bomb squad’ who were deemed surplus to requirements, such as Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho, left a lot to be desired.
READ MORE: ‘Ruben Amorim isn’t to blame for Man Utd’s struggles – it’s clear who is at fault’READ MORE: Six players could miss Man Utd vs Sunderland clash including World Cup winner
“Look, I’m not the kind of guy who gets involved in controversies, who names people, in fact, I won’t mention anyone’s name here,” Antony told ESPN Brasil when he was asked to reflect on his his final weeks as a Manchester United player. “But I think there was a bit of a lack of respect there, even a bit of rudeness too, with no one giving you a good morning, a good afternoon.
“Not even that. But, anyway, that’s in the past, I won’t give much importance to these things. Now I’m here, at Betis, I’m living here, that’s the most important thing for me.”
Antony followed Erik ten Hag to Old Trafford in the summer of 2022 for a transfer fee that would have surpassed £86million if all the add-ons and bonuses were met. But he failed to replicate the dazzling form he showed in the Eredivisie with Ajax and was sold for a huge loss by United to Betis after weeks of negotiations, eventually moving for just £21.65m.
But while Antony believes there were mitigating factors behind his failure to make it in the Premier League, he takes responsibility for things not working out.
Asked why he believed things did not go well at United, Antony replied: “I am a man who accepts my responsibilities. I think off-field matters affected me a lot, in my performance. I know my potential, I know my qualities, I didn’t play in a World Cup for nothing, I didn’t return to the national team for nothing.
“I also take responsibility for it not working out, for not performing as I wanted. But I always try to see the bright side of things, going through this entire process, this time at United, was necessary to see myself.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
