Journalist says Antony's Manchester United debut was reminiscent of Cristiano Ronaldo's early days at Old Trafford

Football journalist Dean Jones has brought out various similarities between Antony's debut and Cristiano Ronaldo's initial days at Manchester United.

Antony was Manchester United's marquee signing in the recently-concluded summer transfer window. The Brazilian attacker arrived from Dutch champions Ajax for a fee of around £86 million.

Antony made his United debut against Arsenal earlier this month and made an instant impact. The Brazilian international scored the first goal in a 3-1 victory for the Red Devils.

Dean Jones saw a lot of similarities between Antony and Cristiano Ronaldo's early days at Old Trafford. The journalist stated how both players tried various things on the pitch. Some worked out well for them while others did not. However, both Cristiano Ronaldo and Anthony showed the hunger to make things happen during their respective early stages in the Premier League.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Dean Jones was quoted as saying the following:

“Not everything he’s trying is working. But that was the case when Ronaldo first came into this team and, obviously Ronaldo was younger when he first came into United, I can remember him trying stuff that was just ridiculous at times and he would even look silly. But he kept going and going and going and the United fans love that.”

Antony played a crucial part in Manchester United's victory over Arsenal, which ultimately ended the Gunners' 100 percent start to the 2022-23 season. The Brazilian international was fittingly substituted off in the second-half and replaced by Cristiano Ronaldo with 30 minutes remaining in the game.

Both Ronaldo and Antony then started together in attack along with Anthony Elanga during their opening Europa League game against Real Sociedad. Manchester United, however, suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of the La Liga outfit at Old Trafford.

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Cristiano Ronaldo has had a torrid start to the 2022-23 season for Manchester United

Cristiano Ronaldo has not enjoyed the best of starts to the 2022-23 season. The season started with the five-time Ballon d'Or winner wanting to leave Old Trafford in search of Champions League football. However, his wish was not fulfilled in the transfer window.

Ronaldo has now fallen down the pecking order under new manager Erik ten Hag. The Portuguese forward has started just twice all season. The former Real Madrid and Juventus superstar is yet to open his scoring account this season, despite featuring in seven games.

It is worth mentioning that Ronaldo has entered the final year of his Manchester United contract. If he continues to get limited game time, the Portuguese skipper could leave the club next summer on a free transfer. However, that too might depend on United, who have a clause to extend the forward's contract by another 12 months if they wish to do so.