Antony has come under fire for his celebration aimed at the Coventry City players following Manchester United‘s dramatic penalty shoot-out victory at Wembley. It was a celebration in sharp contrast with team-mate Harry Maguire, who served up a classy response to the Championship side’s efforts.
Erik ten Hag’s side needed a penalty shoot-out – and a huge slice of VAR luck – to progress beyond Coventry and book their spot in the FA Cup final. Coventry had thought they’d won the game in the 120th minute, but Victor Torp’s late winner was adjudged to have been offside following a VAR review.
But following Rasmus Hojlund’s winning spot-kick, Antony took the bizarre decision to goad the Coventry players. The winger, who Ten Hag had brought off the bench, cupped his ears towards the City squad, insinuating they were no longer making any noise.
There was no such behaviour on show from ex-United skipper Harry Maguire, who along with other members of the United team offered up warm congratulations to the Coventry squad. In truth, it appeared some United players were too embarrassed to celebrate at full-time, with the record English champions having surrendered a three-goal lead earlier in the game. And understandably, Antony’s actions led to fierce criticism during the immediate post-match reaction.
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Speaking on BBC Radio 5Live’s coverage, Clinton Morrison blasted the Brazil forward’s antics. On the 24-year-old, Morrison said: “He needs to concentrate on himself because he could be playing the Championship next season.” A brutal, but honest reflection.
The £86million signing has netted just two goals across all competitions this season, with his future at United continuing to be called into question. During his 54 minutes on the pitch against Coventry, Antony attempted just one dribble – which he failed – while registering four shots – none of which hit the target.
Elsewhere, manager Ten Hag lambasted his players for losing control of the game at 3-0 up. Commenting post-match to ITV, he said: “It was an incredible game, a strange game too. We had total control for so long and then gave it away in the last part of the game.
“We had control for 75 minutes and have to give Coventry a compliment for what they did in the last 15 minutes… In these moments we are making mistakes and not keeping our responsibilities.”
He added: “We can’t say this group doesn’t have the right mentality because they showed character today. But in the final part there was a lack of discipline.”
United will take on rivals Manchester City in the FA Cup final on 25th May. It’s the second consecutive season the pair have faced each other at this stage, with City running out 2-1 winners last time around.
