It didn’t take long for Antony to endear himself to the Manchester United faithful. An overnight sensation in England, the Brazilian spoke of his humble beginnings in Brazil in a recent interview.
It took Antony 35 minutes to endear himself to the Manchester United faithful on his debut following his mega-money move from AFC Ajax. The Brazilian had followed his mentor Erik ten Hag to Manchester, and, having picked him in his starting line-up for the game against Arsenal, he repaid his manager with an instant goal – a curled strike from inside the box past a flailing Aaron Ramsdale. The Red Devils won the game 3-1, courtesy of his early strike.
The Brazilian had become an overnight sensation in Manchester, but he, like many of his compatriots, had humble beginnings. In an interview with Sky Sports, the youngster recalled his difficult and sometimes scary life in his native country.
“I didn’t have boots to play football. I didn’t have a bedroom, I slept on the sofa.
“I lived right in the middle of the favela. Twenty yards from my house were drug dealers. There were moments my brother, sister and I would cry and hug each other thinking about our lives.
There were times when we were bailing water out of our flooded house, but we’d still do it with a smile on our faces.”
The edge that growing up in a favela gave Antony, and distinguished him from some of his peers, was there for all to see from the first moment, recalls former Chelsea scout Piet de Visser, who lamented missing out on him in a recent interview.
“We couldn’t get him, I would have wanted him. He’s a boy with poison in his backside. He sometimes crosses the line, but he comes from the favela, doesn’t he?”
the 25-year-old said.
Antony came to Europe in 2020, played two years at Ajax under Ten Hag, and left for United with 82 appearances and 25 goals, with the tag of a full Brazil international.
