Manchester United legend Andy Cole didn’t hold back when reflecting on what Antony had brought to the club.
The winger is in his second season at Old Trafford after arriving on a £86 million deal from Ajax in September 2022, which made him the fourth most expensive signing in Premier League history at the time.
Last term, he notched eight goals and three assists in 44 appearances across all competitions and now, after 12 outings in the 2023/2024 season, he is yet to register a goal or assist.
Given his extortionate price tag, you can understand why supporters have begun losing patience with Antony, as it’s the kind of signing you’d expect to have an instant impact. The 23-year-old retains the trust of Erik ten Hag, who was adamant about bringing him along from Amsterdam to kickstart his United project, but he has only offered lacklustre performances as of late.
Cole berates Antony
It’s not only fans that have criticised Antony’s woeful output, treble-winner Cole had his say on the attacker in a recent interview.
“If I played with Antony, it would drive me mad,” he told Betfred, as cited by Metro. “As a centre-forward, if you’re playing with someone like Antony and he doesn’t get to the byline and put crosses in, then you’re going to be pulling your hair out.
“Strikers need crosses, especially Rasmus Hojlund who hasn’t scored in the Premier League yet. When Antony cuts in on his left-foot, nine times out of ten he’s going to shoot. The only chances Hojlund’s going to receive from Antony is if the opposition goalkeeper parries any of his shots from distance.
“I sometimes have to ask myself what Antony’s strengths are? He doesn’t take players on, he doesn’t create chances and he doesn’t score goals. So what are his strengths?
“We paid a massive amount of money for him. When you look at a club like Brighton who signed Mitoma for £2.7 million, then you have to ask what market are Manchester United shopping in when Brighton pays that for Mitoma and we end up paying £86 million for Antony? Are we not shopping in the same market?
“It’s like Primark and Zara; you think by paying more to shop at Zara, the quality will be better, but it turns out to be the same as Primark, so you end up paying more for the same thing.
”I look at the transfers we’ve made over the last 10 years and we’ve spent a hell of a lot of money on players that other clubs would have paid less for, so is it a case of Manchester United tax? We can’t continue doing that.
“Antony’s had a really disappointing season. I understand he’s had things going on in the background, but that aside, playing football is ultimately what he does and I struggle to see what he has given the team so far.
“If his form doesn’t improve throughout the season, you never know what will happen. It all depends on how much longer the manager wants to stick with him.”
Good questions Andrew. ( which, I believe, he prefers to ‘Andy’.
“Nine times out of ten, he’s going to shoot.’ To which could be added ‘and nine times out of ten, he’s going to shoot wide’.
Disappointed: had high hopes for him, as I did Martial, but both give off strong CBA vibes – “ again, I didn’t score, didn’t contribute much. Oh well, what’s for tea tonight?’