Antony registered just 12 goals for United through 96 appearances in all competitions. Having been written off as an £85 million ($114m) flop, the 25-year-old forward was allowed to link up with Betis on loan in January 2025. He impressed during a stint in Spain, gracing the Conference League final, and quickly determined that he wanted to remain in Andalusia.
A protracted summer transfer saga dragged on until deadline day when a £22m ($30m) move was finally completed, with Antony able to escape the infamous ‘bomb squad’ at United that included fellow exiles under Ruben Amorim’s rule in Manchester. The South American has hit out at the Red Devils on a regular basis since embracing a new challenge, with questions continuing to be asked of how he was treated.
Antony has now told ESPN Brasil: “Look, I’m not the kind of guy who gets involved in controversies, who names people, in fact, I won’t mention anyone’s name here. But I think there was a bit of a lack of respect there, even a bit of rudeness too, with no one giving you a good morning, a good afternoon. Not even that. But, anyway, that’s in the past, I won’t give much importance to these things. Now I’m here, at Betis, I’m living here, that’s the most important thing for me.”
He added when asked why things did not play out as planned for him in England: “I am a man who accepts my responsibilities. I think off-field matters affected me a lot, in my performance. I know my potential, I know my qualities, I didn’t play in a World Cup for nothing, I didn’t return to the national team for nothing. I also take responsibility for it not working out, for not performing as I wanted. But I always try to see the bright side of things, going through this entire process, this time at United, was necessary to see myself.”
Antony has previously told TNT Sports Brazil of the dark days that he endured when struggling for form with the Red Devils and tumbling down the pecking order: “[Coming to Betis] changed a lot because I needed to find myself, because of everything I went through in my personal life. I wanted to do things, but they didn’t seem to work out because I wasn’t happy, I didn’t feel that desire to play football, and I needed to find myself and be happy again because playing football was always something I loved. I went through difficult times [at Manchester United] when I no longer felt that pleasure. I even always told my brother, I told him that I couldn’t take it anymore.”
He added: “[My brother] told me to hold on a little longer, that things were going to change. It even made me emotional, because they were very hard days for me. Only I know what it was like to be there at home, not having the strength to even play with my son, going days without eating, staying locked in my room. So, for me it was very complicated, but thank God, with the help of my family and mainly with the help of God, I managed to get ahead and today I am very happy here.”
Betis are delighted to have Antony back on board, having worked hard to reach a compromise with United that suited all parties, and saw him open his goal account for the 2025-26 campaign in a dramatic 2-2 Europa League draw with Nottingham Forest. He has not, however, been included in Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil squad for upcoming friendlies against South Korea and Japan.
