Aheed Abrar
Real Sociedad left-back Aihen Munoz details battle with Antony in win against Manchester United
Manchester United forward Antony was someone Real Sociedad left-back Aihen Munoz was wary of. The Spanish opposition, in the end, got the result and took home the three points from Old Trafford with a 1-0 victory.
La Real scored in the 59th minute as Brais Mendez found the target from the spot. The La Liga outfit were awarded a controversial penalty for a handball. David Silva’s attempt at goal was blocked by Lisandro Martinez and the ball came off his leg and hit his arm. VAR did not intervene either.
Antony started the match and played 71 minutes before being substituted for Jadon Sancho. Speaking to AS (h/t MEN), Munoz, who had to contend with the Brazilian, admitted that it was challenging keeping the 22-year-old at bay. The left-back also detailed how La Real were able to beat United.
“Covering these players is very difficult.”
“With intense minutes. We were very brave, we were aggressive up front.”
This was Antony’s second consecutive start. The Brazilian featured from the start as the Red Devils saw off Arsenal in the Premier League. On his debut, the 22-year-old scored a brilliant goal. However, in the Europa League fixture, the forward had a relatively quiet game.
United’s winning streak ends
Antony arrived in Manchester from Ajax a few days before the transfer deadline, reuniting with Erik ten Hag. The 22-year-old was immediately handed his first minutes making it to the XI against the Gunners.
Prior to Antony starting, the gaffer had not changed the starting lineup since the Liverpool fixture. After United lost the first two games of the 2022/23 season, Ten Hag made some bold decisions, keeping Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Maguire on the bench for the North West derby.
And the starting XI stayed the same until Antony replaced Anthony Elanga in the fixture against the table toppers. Alongside the Brazilian’s strike, Marcus Rashford also got on the scoresheet with a brace.
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The La Real game is hopefully a temporary setback which United are able to bounce back from in the next game.
