Antony makes €95m Man Utd admission - and compares himself to Jesus

25 Sept 2026 18:01 BST | 2 min read

Tom Weber | Writer

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Real Betis winger Antony has revealed how his monumental Manchester United price tag affected him during his time at the club.

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The former Brazil international has gone down in Premier League history as one of the biggest flop signings ever. He followed his Ajax boss Erik ten Hag to Man Utd in 2022, completing an eye-watering €95 million transfer.

It has since been claimed that this move was almost exclusively driven by the manager. Man Utd's recruitment department supposedly had concerns over Antony's suitability for the Premier League, but Ten Hag's determination ultimately convinced the club to pay over the odds for the winger.

Current ETV

ETV Range

€27.4M - €33.4M

Predictably, the 26-year-old struggled to justify his price tag. He scored just 12 goals and produced five assists in 96 appearances for the Red Devils. In the first half of 2024/25, his final season at the club, he played just 135 Premier League minutes and was loaned to Real Betis in January.

In Spain, Antony found a new home. He was sensational for the Andalusian giants and instantly became a fan favourite, scoring nine goals and matching his total Man Utd assist tally in half a season.

Antony's Man Utd confession

The LaLiga club proceeded to make his stay permanent the following summer, although this was anything but straightforward. Understandably, Man Utd played hardball over Antony as they wanted to recoup a significant chunk of their gigantic outlay.

However, with the player unequivocal in his desire to only join Betis, Man Utd ultimately had to settle for a €25m fee as a last resort in the dying embers of the transfer window.

His performances haven't quite been as spectacular since, although he has remained a solid contributor for the Verdiblancos. Antony bagged 14 goals and 10 assists across 46 games last term and none so far in eight appearances this season.

Speaking to Sofascore, Antony has now admitted that the massive money Man Utd spent on him, and particularly the criticism it entailed, did play on his mind during his time in England. "Of course the responsibility increases when they pay that kind of money for you," he began.

"But I’ve always been a player who doesn’t like to focus on those numbers. I know they didn’t pay that much for no reason. A lot of people think [the scrutiny] didn’t affect me, but of course it did - a lot.

"People say things without knowing the person, they hear something on TV and immediately start talking. If Jesus was perfect and people still talked about him and did what they did to him, of course they’re going to talk about me too."

Despite the chastening experience at Old Trafford, Antony insists that he has no regrets: "I made a lot of friends, achieved a lot of things, won trophies, which is important," he said.