Talk about rubbing salt into the wounds.
After former Barcelona director Ramon Planes spoke openly about the Blaugrana’s failure to sign Manuel Locatelli, Dusan Vlahovic and Lautaro Martinez – the latter coming ‘very close’ to joining from Inter Milan – Eric Abidal certainly could have picked a better time to kick the Cules in the cajones.
“We followed him three years ago,” Abidal, Barcelona’s former sporting director, told Canal Plus on Wednesday night.
The player in question? Ajax winger Antony.
“In retrospect, the list of players we followed was very large and Antony was three years younger at the time,” Abidal adds, explaining why Barcelona opted not to act on their interest.
“He was not yet as consistent as he is now.
“(Ajax is) a very good choice. Because Ajax is a club where he can develop and where coaching is paramount. Barcelona is not Ajax. The requirements of the coaches are different, so we chose not to sign him at that time.”
Another regret for Barcelona?
Antony might not have taken the Champions League by storm like Vlahovic did 24 hours earlier – netting his first goal in the competition just 30 seconds. But he still left a lasting impression on one Thierry Henry during Ajax’s thrilling 2-2 draw with Benfica.
“The quality he has one-v-one in the box is second to none,” Henry, who played alongside Abidal at the Camp Nou, tells CBS on Paramount.
“The guy delivers every single time.”
Cutting in from the left, comparisons will be made between Antony and the man he replaced at Ajax – the similarly mercurial and right-footed Hakim Ziyech.
At 21 and with seven Brazil caps under his belt already, Antony feels like a footballer with a far higher ceiling than the Chelsea playmaker. He has 11 goals and nine assists to his name this season.
And, armed with a terrifying array of tricks and flicks, this epitome of Brazilian Jogo Bonito may be the next player to graduate with honours from Ajax’s feted finishing school.
Bayer Munich have been linked already. Liverpool too, via 90Min. If given the choice, it seems Antony would choose the latter over the former. He expressed his desire to play Premier League football earlier this week (Fabrizio Romano).
Perhaps, if Liverpool see Luis Diaz as Sadio Mane’s long-term replacement on the left, Antony is the second coming of Mo Salah. He certainly shares the Egyptian’s unpredictability, end product and eye for the spectacular.
As for Barcelona, well they can only dream about a front three of Antony, Vlahovic and Lautaro Martinez these days.
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