“Zero to Hero”: Antony’s Tale of Revival at Real Betis

Antony has turned his career around with stellar performances at Real Betis. (Image credits - FMT, License Details)

Manchester United's star winger Antony seems to be enjoying his life at Real Betis on loan after his struggling spell with the Red Devils, which led to Ruben Amorim granting him a much-needed loan move in order for him to have a fresh start.

When the Brazilian joined United from Ajax in 2022, he was being considered as one of the most exciting prospects in Europe, with many even deeming him to be the “left-footed Neymar.”.

However, life in England turned out to be a nightmare for the Brazilian, which led to him being regarded as one of United's worst signings ever.

The 24-year-old has managed to score only 11 goals and provide 5 assists in 96 appearances for the club since his arrival.

While he managed to score 3 goals in his first 3 Premier League games, his flair started to diminish as the games went by, leading to an unexpected premature departure from Manchester United after just two seasons.

Just when everyone started to feel that he'll end up as one of them “what if?” players, Antony managed to turn his career around at Real Betis, silencing his critics and reviving his confidence.

The Brazilian has already scored three goals in just four appearances for the club, all of them being world-class goals.

On top of that, he won 3 back-to-back Man of the Match awards in his first 3 appearances for the Los Béticos, already becoming a fan's favourite.

The Curse of Manchester United: Why Do Players Like Antony Succumb to the Grand Stage of Old Trafford?

Antony’s stellar performances at Betis have questioned Manchester United's credibility and their ability to nurture young talents. It has become a common occurrence to see struggling United players shine elsewhere after leaving the club.

Scott McTominay, Chris Smalling, and Romelu Lukaku, to name a few, have excelled after leaving Manchester United, with Antony now appearing to be on the same revival path as well, sparking huge outrage against the Premier League giants.

Former Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo highlighted the bad atmosphere at the club when he returned for his second spell.

CR7's interview provided details regarding the poor and outdated facilities provided by the club, which sparked large-scale outrage amongst the fans, who began to point fingers at the owners and management for the poor performance of the club for almost a decade now.

Manchester United have been riddled with internal politics, leading to a massive decline since Sir Alex Ferguson retired.

United seemed to have lost their quality for which they achieved so much success over the years, with promising youngsters succumbing to this ‘bad atmosphere’ that ruins their mentality and attitude towards the game.

In a recent podcast interview, Cristiano Ronaldo said that the club needs a "complete rebuild" in order to get back to their former glory days.

In the podcast, the Portugal captain said, “Manchester, they need to rebuild everything, in my opinion. This club needs time to rebuild because it’s still one of the best clubs in the world, but they need to change.”

He further added, “I believe that the future will be bright. I believe, but they don’t depend only on the talents. It’s more than that. It’s all club, all, not only players, club, everything as a unit, united. They have to rebuild from the bottom. If not, they cannot compete. It will be impossible.”