Antony of Manchester United has revealed in an interview why he chose football as a career, the star player said it’s not about winning the Ballon D’or or Champions League.
Antony, Manchester United forward has shared personal details about his early years and what it was like to grow up in Sao Paulo ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
Manchester United winger Antony disclosed his childhood dream while discussing the football icons he grew up watching in his Sao Paulo favela, ‘Inferninho’. The 22-year-old said he grew up in ‘little hell’ to playing in the Champions League to lighting up the Theatre of Dreams pitch.
After making an impression in the Eredivisie, the Brazilian transferred from Ajax to the Premier League team last summer.
Antony has developed as a crucial member of the Red Devils team.
Since joining Manchester United, he has quickly risen to prominence. The Brazilian superstar made six appearances in the English Premier League and scored three goals before he supposedly suffered a knock.
Antony who cost United more than £82 million has recorded three goals in six league games since his arrival at the club last summer.
He produced an amazing return of three goals in six Premier League games before sustaining an unnamed injury. He has so far shown that United was right to pay more than £82 million to bring him to England.
Meanwhile, the 22-year-old Brazilian star has now spoken up about the difficult circumstances of his upbringing.
While revealing why he chose to pursue a career in football, Antony said: “If you talk to the media, they always ask you about your dreams. The Champions League? The World Cup? The Ballon d’Or?
“Those are not dreams. Those are goals. My only dream was to take my parents out of the favela. There was no Plan B. I was going to make it or die trying.”
In a column he wrote for Players’ Tribune, Antony compared the favela he grew up in to “hell,” as he described the abuse he endured as a schoolboy or playing with his pals.
“For my European friends who don’t know, the Sao Paulo favela where I grew up is called Inferninho, which translates to “small hell,” and Antony said, “I was born in hell. That’s not a joke.”
The winger is now a member of Brazil’s World Cup team and hopes to get a starting spot against Serbia on November 24.
Antony of Manchester United Reveals his three idols in football:
On the other hand, Antony named his Manchester United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo as one of the three football stars he used to look up to as a teenager.
The Brazilian star also revealed that he used to idolize two of his countrymen, Ronaldinho and Neymar.
According to him, he used to watch the trio on YouTube while growing up as a teenager.
What’s next for Antony?
Antony of Manchester United will be looking forward to making an impact in the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar as the fast-rising star was included in Brazil’s star-studded World Cup squad. He is expected to return to Old Trafford in December.
