Antony has had a strong start to his career at Manchester United since joining from Ajax on transfer deadline day.
The last time we saw him in action was in the victory over Sheriff, when his extravagant trademark 360 spin move caused a real stir.
Former United midfielder Paul Scholes was highly critical, branding Antony a ‘clown’ during his analysis on BT Sport.
Antony took exception at the time to his critics, defending his right to express himself on the pitch.
Antony claps back at Paul Scholes ‘clown’ comment
Antony is now with the Brazil squad preparing for the World Cup, and ahead of the tournament, he has written his passionate story of his career so far for the Players’ Tribune.
The winger’s story is well worth a read, talking of his determined battle to escape Brazil’s favelas, growing up in poverty, and love for football.
One line stuck out, as he appeared to clap back at Paul Scholes’ clown jibe, accusing his critics of failing to understand his journey to the top.
Antony says: “If you think I’m just a clown, then you don’t understand my story. The art of Ronaldinho and Cristiano and Neymar inspired me as a child. I watched these Gods in amazement on stolen Wifi, then I went out to the concrete pitch to try to imitate their genius. “
The 23-year-old talked of his admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo on a couple of occasions, and he has clearly been excited to play alongside him – even though this looks unlikely to be happening in the future.
Antony was backed with support from Neymar in defence of his trickery a few weeks ago, with commentator Robbie Savage lambasting the winger.
Manchester United fans are on Antony’s side, we want to see entertaining football, and players demonstrating something exciting on the pitch can give the crowds a real lift.
We can expect plenty of it at the World Cup with Brazil, and Antony should be embraced when he returns to England.
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