Manchester United forward, Antony has come out to say that he is not under pressure as a professional footballer. He recently had his say while speaking to the press, and fans have been reacting.
According to him, playing street football without having shoes on and against drug traffickers was the real pressure, so when he goes through difficult moments on the pitch, he always thinks about the challenges he overcame in the past.
Antony added that he never says these things to sound tough, it was just his reality growing up.
His words, “When I’m asked about pressure, I say ‘what pressure?’ I faced pressure in the favela when I didn’t have shoes to play, I played against drug traffickers and everything. That was real pressure.
When I left in the morning to go to school I often didn’t eat. So when I go through difficult moments I always think about the challenges that I overcame in the past.
On my walk to school one morning, when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old, I came across a man laying in the alley. He was not moving. When I got closer, I realised he was dead.
In the favela, you become kind of numb to these things. There was no other way to go, and I had to get to school. So I just closed my eyes and jumped over the dead body. I am not saying this to sound tough. It was just my reality. In fact, I always say that I was very lucky as a child, because despite all of our struggles, I was given a gift from heaven.
The ball was my saviour. My love from the cradle. In Inferninho, we don’t care about toys for Christmas. Any ball that rolls is perfect to us. I refused to bow my head to anyone. I would elastico the drug dealers. Rainbow the bus drivers. Nutmeg the thieves. I really did not give a f*ck. With a ball at my feet, I had no fear.”
WOW.
Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United or simply United, is a professional football club based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division in the English football league system.
Nicknamed the Red Devils, they were founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, but changed their name to Manchester United in 1902. After a spell playing in Clayton, Manchester, the club moved to their current stadium, Old Trafford, in 1910.
Alex Ferguson and his assistant Archie Knox arrived from Aberdeen on the day of Atkinson’s dismissal, and guided the club to an 11th-place finish in the league. Despite a second-place finish in 1987–88, the club was back in 11th place the following season. Reportedly on the verge of being dismissed, Ferguson’s job was saved by victory over Crystal Palace in the 1990 FA Cup final.
The following season, Manchester United claimed their first UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup title. That triumph allowed the club to compete in the European Super Cup for the first time, where United beat European Cup holders Red Star Belgrade 1–0 at Old Trafford. The club appeared in two consecutive League Cup finals in 1991 and 1992 the left and the right, but he’s not got any sense of danger yet, and empties the midfield area too readily.
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