Former centre-back Rio Ferdinand has criticised Manchester United winger Antony after he struggled to impose himself during Sunday's 3-2 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
The Brazilian, who joined United for an £85.5million fee from Ajax at the end of last summer's transfer window, struggled to make his presence felt against the Gunners and was taken off and replaced by Fred with just under 20 minutes of normal time left on the clock. He has failed to live up to his hefty-sized price tag so far this season, often going missing in games and not offering enough in terms of an attacking threat.
He has scored five goals in 19 appearances so far this term, two of which were absolute stunners, but his all-round game has left United fans feeling deflated, with his Brazilian flair and trickery rarely resulting in much good being crafted. He struggles to get the better of his markers and make things happen often enough, highlighted by his tally of zero assists this season.
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And it was his failure to beat a man that infuriated Ferdinand against Arsenal, with the former Reds defender raising questions about Antony's individual game.
"The concerning thing for me with somebody like Antony is that he can't beat anyone – and for a Brazilian that's surprising," said Ferdinand, speaking on the Vibe with Five podcast. "He just doesn't beat anyone and I'm sitting there thinking, 'Was that always the way?'
"I've seen clips of him when he was at Ajax and he was somebody who used to beat people. I saw [Thomas] Partey – who I wouldn't put down as like a roaster, a sprinter – absolutely burst past him, and I'm thinking, 'Woah, he [Antony] hasn't got much power in them legs'.
"So, yes, he's a tricky winger, but tricky wingers you want them to still be able to beat the defender. Even [Oleksandr] Zinchenko, he's a great player, great footballer, but defensively you get him one-v-one and you're a wide-man, you should feel, 'I can get hold of this guy and I can deal with him'."
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