Antony joined Real Betis on loan in January with the “most expensive United flop of all time” note hanging on his back. In a matter of weeks, everything turned around for Brazilian Erik Ten Hag to take with him to Old Trafford in 2022. It was therefore a very emotional farewell for the Real Betis supporters after 26 games, 9 goals and 5 assists, plus the Conference League final.
Antony posted a two-minute video on Saturday before returning to Manchester, in which he told the full story of his journey from football hell to the opposite in Seville.
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– Today is the day I give thanks for one of the most beautiful chapters of my life, and as I write this part of my story, I have to tell you why you have been, and always will be, so special to me.
– Since I was a child, football was not just a dream. It was my only chance to change my life. But for me, it was even more than that. It was joy. While many saw football as a way out, I saw it as a way in. Playing was not an escape, it was fate, sheer happiness. Life took me a long way, from the favela and out into the world. I left Brazil, played in the Netherlands, played in England and went from being a boy to becoming a father.
– A lot has changed, but football … Football has always been there as a safe haven. Until one day when everything unraveled. From heaven to hell. The ball stopped going into the goal, the joy disappeared, my world went dark. I started to doubt myself, my talent and my passion for the game. Then football gave me one last gift: Real Betis.
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– When I came here, I didn’t know what to expect, but not even in my wildest dreams had I imagined finding what I found. From my first steps at this club, I felt something different. It was like coming home. Like finding a part of me that I thought I had lost.
– With you, I smiled again. With you I found the child I once was, the one who loved football with all his heart. Thanks, Real Betis.
Will not be easy to return to “hell” after this.
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