Paul Scholes may go on to be proved right that Manchester United have bought a one-trick pony in Antony, but that doesn't matter if the trick is quite a good one.
Erik ten Hag would have known better than anyone else the type of player that United were signing when he sanctioned a move for Antony. The duo spent two years together at Ajax, winning the Eredivisie in both seasons.
The Brazilian winger scored 22 goals and provided 20 assists across all competitions during the two campaigns he had in the Netherlands. During his time in Amsterdam, Antony featured on the right-wing and demonstrated an exceptional level of close control.
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The 22-year-old can also change direction in an instant, making it very difficult to defend against him. His opponents either get too tight, allowing him to skip past them, or they leave too much space and invite him to show off his acceleration and dribbling skills at speed.
One consistent feature during his time at Ajax was his tendency to hug the touchline, before cutting inside to shoot on his left foot. Despite the bruising derby day defeat, fans did get to see Antony's lethal shooting attribute in action.
After United's 3-2 win over Omonia Nicosia in the Europa League, the winger was criticised by former United midfielder Paul Scholes for being too one dimensional.
Scholes said: "He (Jadon Sancho) also needs a centre-forward to link with and he hasn't really got that. I don't think Antony, on the other side, runs in behind, he seems to be a little bit of a one-trick pony, always cutting inside and passing back to the full-back or having a shot."
Scholes' argument relies on the opinion that if your opponents know what you're going to do next, it makes it easier to defend against. On the surface, it would be foolish to suggest he's wrong, however, Arjen Robben built a career over, by and large, doing the exact same thing again and again. The number of times that the former Bayern Munich winger would cut inside on his left foot and curl the ball into the top corner is countless.
In fact, when Robben was asked about his trademark move in 2019, he said : "I can be very proud of that because people say it’s like your own move, running inside and scoring a goal. It’s something I have been doing throughout the years and, well, it’s still successful. If you do it at the right time it still surprises them. Timing is the key, always.”
Scholes may well have a valid argument to make with Antony learning how to pick the right time to cut inside and beat his man, but the outcome can be devastating when he gets it right.
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