Juventus: Who is 21-year-old Antony, Bianconeri’s latest interest?
You know the thing with Brazilian footballers. The wise men say that football — in place of blood cells — runs through their vessels. It is amusing, no? Since the inception of the game, we have seen players with Brazilan backgrounds doing things that no one could ever imagine.
From Pelé, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Cafu, Ronaldinho, Kaká to Neymar Jr presently, it is a whole entity that has inspired so many around the world — with their sheer footballing attributes, trickeries with the ball on their feet or perhaps cunningness sometimes. People would prefer getting sacked by their boss if they had to, but there would be no chance of missing the Brazilian national team take the field.
A football-crazy country made everyone crazy with their skilful toes. Juventus football club have been blessed enough to get entertained by Brazilian assets such as Dino Da Costa, Nené, Chinesinho, Júlio César, Dani Alves, Douglas Costa, Danilo, and Arthur Melo. In fact, one of their latest additions in the form of Kaio Jorge belongs to the samba-originated country. What gibberish are we taking now? Why do we seem so determined to fix Brazilian football at the pinnacle of recognition?
Spoiler alert — the next signing that Juventus make could be the one with the prestigious Brazilian heritage.
What is the story?
From Dejan Kulusevski and Federico Chiesa to Kaio Jorge — Juventus have opted to sign youth as part of their altered transfer policy. When the Bianconeri are visioning their future purpose without a talisman such as Cristiano Ronaldo — who left the club abruptly to join the English side in Manchester United, the club hierarchy seems firm in their quest for success by keeping the faith in young talents as well as building up a team with the right blend of experience and youthfulness.
Consequently, the arrival of more starlets is anticipated.
As such, Juventus have been keeping an eye on Ajax’s 21-year-old sensation Antony, reports Calciomercatonews.com (via Tutto Juve). It has been claimed that Juventus are not the only team fascinated by the youngster’s qualities, with AC Milan being keenly interested in the boy from São Paulo.
The report states that it could be a two-horse race. Details regarding a potential deal could escalate in the next few months. Though, they also envision that it is more like to be a summer move for the forward rather than one done in the upcoming January transfer window.
What do we know about this 21-year-old?
Born in 2000 at Osasco (a São Paulo state in Brazil), Antony Matheus dos Santos, popularly known as Antony, is naturally a left-footed right-winger who can also play in various attacking midfield roles. It was a blessing in disguise for him to be born so near to the São Paulo academy, one of the best at producing young talents across South America. Well, Antony joined their youth set-up at the age of ten.
By the time he turned 19, he had won a J League Challenge and had been voted as the best player of the respective tournament. Soon he picked up the pen and signed his first professional contract with São Paulo FC. While playing there, he came under the radar of the Ajax scouting network, who decided to keep tabs on him for a few months before allowing the club to sign him on a permanent basis for an initial transfer fee of £13 million in the January transfer window of 2020.
The 21-year-old has made 50 appearances since moving to Amsterdam, logging 11 goals and 12 assists across all competitions (as per Transfermarkt) in the process. A player with a diminutive body frame, Antony possesses the advantage of a low centre of gravity, meaning he could turn his opponents and wriggle through crowded spaces with utter ease.
Bending his body, he can then get the maximum curl on the ball — much like Dejan Kulusevski. However, the only difference between Antony and Kulusevski is that the Swede doesn’t have that aforementioned low centre of gravity. So, what Kulusevki does to get rid of his opponents would require less amount of effort from the Brazilian, due to the latter’s natural gift.
Will he be perfect for Juventus?
Antony has spent just 18 months in Europe and racked up a couple of goals and assists. He is no finished article, that’s for sure, but he boasts that flamboyant Brazilian touch. Will he be perfect for Juventus? That’s difficult to answer since he is so young and there is so much potential brewing inside him.
He is fast and can take players on. But under the supervision of a pragmatist like Max Allegri, a wing-based player, apart from being offensively crafty, has to be defensively astute. It is unlikely that Juventus could provide the youngster with the right platform for proper nourishment.
At such a young age, he is touted as one of the best right-sided wingers playing his trades in Eredivisie. For now, it seems as if he has found a new home at Ajax, a station where he could learn and hone his brilliance.
Juventus should not bring him in unless they are sure of what to do with such an amazing talent.