Rio Ferdinand has hailed Antony and Fred after the Brazilian duo both scored for Manchester United in Thursday night's enthralling 4-3 aggregate win over Barcelona.
United met the Spanish giants at Old Trafford for a place in the last 16 of the Europa League, with the tie poised finely after last week's 2-2 draw at the Nou Camp.
Robert Lewandowski had nudged Barcelona into the lead with a first-half penalty, but United fought back and restored parity just minutes after the interval through Fred. And with United firmly in control after drawing level, Antony stepped up to bag a 73rd minute winner to cap an impressive second-half cameo after coming off the bench.
Both Fred and his compatriot, Antony, have come in for criticism on more than one occasion this season as a result of lacklustre performances. But Ferdinand was full of praise for the duo after Thursday night's match, which United won 2-1 on the night to advance at Barca's expense.
In a celebratory video shared to social media, the former Manchester United defender was jubilantly singing Antony's name before lauding the winger's contribution. He said: “That’s what you want to see; people coming off the bench and making an impact!
“No sulking, helping the cause. United are through to the next round after beating Barcelona who are top of La Liga. Let’s go! I’m not getting carried away.”
Ferdinand, who went on to predict United would build on the result by toppling Newcastle in Sunday's Carabao Cup final, then retweeted the clip with another post, which simply read: "Fred btw…. FRED!!!!!!!!" in recognition of the former Shakhtar Donetsk man's all-action display on the night.
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Although he managed to net a vital important goal, Fred's main task was stifling the influence of long-term Manchester United target Frenkie de Jong. The Dutch playmaker was courted extensively by United boss Erik ten Hag back in the summer, but opted to stay at Barcelona.
Just as he did in last week's first leg, the midfielder stuck to the task and did whatever he could to disrupt the rhythm of Barcelona's play. And Fred's efforts earned him plenty of praise from Ten Hag, who also pointed out the pivotal role the midfield enforcer played in one of United's goals last week.
"He had an important role already last week in Barcelona," said Ten Hag while speaking about Fred at his post-match press conference on Thursday night. "First to stop Frenkie de Jong playing, he had to play as a mosquito around him and go behind him, and he did it magnificent.
"Last week he gave a brilliant assist for Rashy [Marcus Rashford] and today he scored a goal. Brilliant performance."
