Antony went unused for Manchester United during their dramatic 2-1 win over Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon, but the Brazil forward was delighted to see teammate Rasmus Hojlund do the business. Hojlund netted for a fifth Premier League game in succession to well and truly put his early-season struggles to one side.
United splashed out £72million on Hojlund this summer. He was, effectively, signed as a delayed replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo after the five-time Ballon d’Or winner departed under controversial circumstances.
Goals were at a premium for the Denmark striker in his early domestic outings. However, after belatedly opening his Premier League account on Boxing Day – incidentally against Villa – the 21-year-old continued his brilliant form with the opener at Villa Park as United boosted their revived top-four charge.
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Douglas Luiz, Antony’s international teammate for Brazil, looked to have earned Villa a share of the spoils before substitute Scott McTominay won it for United in the dying embers. McTominay’s header moved United within six points of fourth-placed Tottenham in the ongoing scrap for Champions League qualification.
Villa also have to be factored in to that particular race. They have accumulated 46 points from 24 matches so far this season with Tottenham and United on 47 points and 41 points respectively.
A shining light in victory, Hojlund logged on to his Instagram account no sooner than the final whistle sounded to share a message to his followers. It read: “Enjoyed that one. Bring it on.” His post featured three emojis.
Antony, seemingly not too disheartened in the midst of his no-show from the substitutes bench, was among the first people to comment on Hojlund’s upload. The former Ajax forward – who cost £81million himself – posted two love heart emojis and two smiling face with heart eyes emojis on Hojlund’s comments section.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
