In many ways, Antony is the perfect example of just how much football’s transfer market has suffered inflation in the last few years.Five or so years ago, £82m would have got you a game-changer; someone who could single-handedly win a side several trophies. Now, however, it gets you a winger who was involved in just six Premier League goals in his debut season.Eyebrows were raised at the time of Antony’s move to Manchester United last summer, given the staggering price tag, and he has since only shown glimpses of what he is truly capable of.Cutting inside and finding the top corner in Robben-like fashion one moment, the winger has the tendency to spurn golden opportunities in the next. And that’s been the issue. Antony has simply lacked consistency.If the former Ajax man was looking to build confidence in pre-season, too, then his open goal miss in United’s 3-2 defeat against Borussia Dortmund wouldn’t have exactly worked wonders.
Antony misses open goal in Borussia Dortmund defeat
The embarrassing miss – in which this footage shows fans reacting with shock – occurred on the rebound of Marcus Rashford’s initial effort, which was palmed into the path of Antony by Dortmund shot-stopper Alexander Meyer.
You can also see it better on the official Manchester United YouTube page highlights (at around 3:39).
With the goalkeeper out of position, the Brazilian had the easy task of side-footing home. Instead of completing that task with ease, however, Antony completely miss-hit his effort, firing wide of the mark, failing to equalise for the Red Devils late on.
Erik ten Hag will be disappointed with the winger, especially given the fact that United went on to lose the game 3-2.
The Premier League giants initially took the lead against their Bundesliga opponents through Diogo Dalot, before Donyell Malen struck twice in as many minutes to flip the game on its head.
Perhaps summing up his inconsistency, Antony managed to get on the scoresheet prior to his open goal miss to level things up at 2-2. Alas, Youssoufa Moukoko sealed victory for Dortmund from the bench in a back-and-forth affair.
Recently speaking to the club website about Antony, United legend Jap Staam said: “You know Antony’s got quality, of course, on the ball.
“He’s got decent pace, even if he’s not lightning. He needs to become, and I know we were talking about being predictable in a way of playing, then he needs to step up a gear to make a change.
“As a winger, you always need to be very decisive. You need to take initiative on the ball. You need to go forward. You need to take on your one-v-ones and you need to make it difficult for your opposition by, one time, going inside and, the other time, going outside.”
How many goals has Antony scored for Manchester United?
Antony isn’t exactly a natural goalscorer, often opting for showmanship more than anything else, epitomised by the impressive nature of the small number of goals that he has scored during his time at Old Trafford.
In total, the Brazilian has found the back of the net eight times in a Manchester United shirt, whilst also recording three assists in his debut season.
He got off to the perfect start in the Premier League, of course, when he scored an incredible curling effort against local rivals Manchester City, as his new side fell to a frustrating 6-3 defeat.
Things haven’t gone quite so well since then, and fans have been reacting to Antony’s open goal miss, some of which you can see below:
