‘Clown’ Antony gets serious criticism after circus act, but United attacker says: ‘I’m not going to stop it’ | Foreign football

with videoOf course, Thursday night was about Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United’s selection, but thanks to his teammate Antony, not all the attention was focused on the Portuguese. The Brazilian gave birth in the Europa League match with FC Sheriff (3-0) creating a sensation by taking the ball in the first half and doing a double pirouette, and then handing in the ball casually. Antony says he doesn’t care about the criticism.

The remarkable moment came in the 38th minute. With Cristiano Ronaldo in the squad, Manchester United struggled to score against Sheriff Tiraspol. Just as the pressure started to build, Antony thought it was wise to do a double pirouette when touching the ball, one of his signature moves from his Ajax days. It caused Erik ten Hag to shake his head, who left Antony in the dressing room after the break. “That was discussed in advance,” he said.

It all worked out for Manchester United in the end. The Ten Hag team won 3-0, partly due to a goal from Ronaldo who scored the third goal from the rebound. But afterwards it was not about the returned Portuguese, but mainly about the action of former Ajax player Antony. Manchester United icon Paul Scholes was not pleased with the Brazilian’s mannerisms. “I like a bit of show and entertainment, but at least make sure the pass is right,” he told BT Sport.


Scholes continues: ,,What does such an action mean to him? What does it mean with a 4-0 lead and what does it mean with a 0-0 score? We don’t want to see this, do we? Not even in Brazil. I like to see skills and entertainment, but now he’s just acting like a clown. It’s really ridiculous. Ten Hag’s reaction says enough in that regard,” said Scholes about the head-shaking trainer. “He does not pass a player with it, he does not eliminate anyone and does not entertain anyone. It is 0-0 and then he kicks the ball out. I have often seen him do it at Ajax and he is like that once, but this is not possible.”

Ten Hag returned to the conscious moment during the press conference. ,,I have no problem with that, as long as it is functional”, said Ten Hag, who expects his Brazilian player to come into the opponent’s penalty area more often and to throw more pace in his dribbles. “It’s a trick, it’s fun as long as it’s functional and you don’t lose the ball. But if it’s a trick for the trick, I’ll correct it.”

Antony himself does not want to know anything about the criticism, he made clear via a message on Instagram. He wrote about the images of his action: “We are known for our art and I will not stop doing what has brought me where I am today.”

Manchester United are through to the next round with a 3-0 win. On Sunday, the Ten Hag team will play the Premier League game at home against West Ham United.


Ten Hag believes that Ronaldo was rewarded for his perseverance with his goal in the Europa League. ,,He kept positioning himself correctly. He didn’t give up and I think that’s what it’s all about in his entire career. That’s why he’s so good,” said Ten Hag. “In the end he got the reward for it. The pressure is always there. Ronaldo knows that and we have to deal with it. All United players know that. But all top scorers need confirmation that they can do it.”

According to Ten Hag, the Portuguese goal can just be a small breakthrough. ,,Tonight he got his confirmation again and he will grow from it. He is hungry, plays with desire and wants to score as many goals as possible. He has to invest a lot and the team also has to invest a lot to serve him.”

Anthony.

Anthony. © REUTERS

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