Antony scored his first league goal of the season for Manchester United against Burnley on the 27th of April, with fans left wondering what his bizarre Sonic the Hedgehog celebration was all about.
The 24-year-old Brazilian moved to Old Trafford from Ajax in August of 2022, and despite being a prominent figure int he dutch side’s attack, has struggled to make an impact for United.
His time in Manchester has been plagued with difficulty, beginning with a sexual assault claim made against him in September of 2023, and several backlashes from fanbases for what could be considered poor professional behaviour.
Such examples include Antony’s miraculous escape of a red card against Brighton, as well as kickback from his own fans for what was called shameful behaviour after beating Coventry in the FA Cup.
On top of all this, the Brazilian forward’s performances have for the most part been severely lacking in quality, further dragging down a struggling Man United side throughout the season.
He finally scored a league goal for United at the end of April when the club drew 1-1 with Burnley at Old Trafford. But it was the player’s celebration that would garner more questions from fans than the goal itself.
Antony appeared to make a bee-line for a specific photographer after netting against Burnley, who handed the forward a Sonic the Hedgehog toy to celebrate with towards the cameras.
This act left many fans puzzled at the significance of the toy, with initial thoughts being that the blue superhero hedgehog may have held some resemblance to the player himself.
However, it has now been revealed that the story behind the hedgehog is even more unexpected, and possibly cringy, than could have been guessed.
It turns out that Antony hires a personal photographer to travel to matches in case he scores, and the Sonic toy that goes with him to every match is for the United player’s son, who is a massive fan of the character.
On an episode of podcast The Upshot, the hosts discuss the comical job that Antony’s photographer has had this season, with his camera having to be called onto action just the once, and less than 2 months from the end of the campaign!
“This poor bloke has been travelling to every match, every week and bringing Sonic with him, in the hope that Antony might finally bag a goal” commented one of the show’s hosts.
“That’s a pretty good gig isn’t it? You get togo to all the games for free, nobody finds out if you’re a s*** photographer because he doesn’t score anyway” replied his co-host as they discussed the bizarre setup between the player and the photographer.
Whereas most players will approach their club’s official photographer for any snaps they might desire, Antony has taken things a step further with his own personal employee behind the lens!
Do you know of any other players who hire their own photographers at matches? Let us know on social media!
