Teddy Sheringham has claimed Antony is the type of player Sir Alex Ferguson wouldn’t have brought to Manchester United.
Signed for £85 million last summer, the former Ajax winger has divided opinion in his first season at Old Trafford. In total, he has eight goals and a couple of assists with a feeling there has been more sizzle than steak in the early days of his United career.
And Sheringham, who was a part of the side that won the Treble under Sir Alex, thinks his boss wouldn’t have rated the Brazilian much, despite some comparisons with a very young Cristiano Ronaldo.
"I’d be interested in hearing what Fergie thinks of Antony,” Sheringham told Lord Ping.
"Whenever we played against wingers like that, Fergie would call them a ‘little fizz-pop’, because he is a winger that whizzes around, can disappear for long periods of games and can do needless tricks, but is also capable of scoring a wonder goal every now and again.
“He’s not really a Fergie player – Fergie liked his wingers to be more consistent than Antony has been.
"I know that he has scored some great goals; some important goals, and he is obviously a talented boy. I think he needs to learn a little bit more about the Premier League, a little bit like Ronaldo when he first joined the club."
Erik ten Hag prioritised the signing of Antony when he was named manager and will be relying on him turning into a player more like the Ronaldo who left United, rather than the flashy youngster that signed.
Ronaldo faced similar taunts from pundits in the early part of his career, before transforming into the most prolific scorer in history. And ex-United defender Patrice Evra admitted that change only came about after some very stern words from his legendary manager.
"Sir Alex Ferguson had a massive impact on Ronaldo's career," Evra told Betfair. "There have been many phases in his career. When he started he was like a YouTube player, lots of skill, that's what I felt when I arrived at United.
"I remember one time early on Ferguson destroyed him. I think we played Chelsea and he didn't have a good performance.
"Ferguson told him, 'It's easy to score a hat trick against Bolton or Blackburn but what about the big games?' It was a tough hairdryer moment. Suddenly after that, I remember Cristiano started to score in the big games, then he became another player.”
Ten Hag was forced to come out to bat for his own player again this week after Antony let his frustrations boil over during the defeat to Brighton. After another largely ineffective performance, the winger was involved in a shoving match with Seagulls defender Lewis Dunk.
Antony came in for some harsh criticism after the incident, but Ten Hag insists his attitude - when controlled - is what makes him the player he is. He said: "It is very strong with him and he is very ambitious. Don't go over the top, stay focused on your game and what the game needs and if he does that he is a great player. I think his improvement is quite obvious and clear."
