Antony's Liverpool Proposal and Salah Succession Plan

Antony’s Manchester United story has long been framed around one question: how did a winger signed for around £82 million from Ajax never truly catch fire at Old Trafford?

Now, the Brazilian has added a sharp new twist to that narrative – he says he could just as easily have been Mohamed Salah’s heir at Liverpool.

‘I had a proposal from Liverpool’

Speaking to ESPN Brazil, Antony looked back on the summer of 2022, when his explosive form under Erik ten Hag at Ajax made him one of the most coveted wide players in Europe. United pushed hardest and got their man. According to Antony, they weren’t alone.

“When I went to Manchester United, I had a proposal from Liverpool, from Klopp, on the table,” he said. “It was also very good. Salah was negotiating a departure, but he ended up staying. Then the manager called me. The name of Manchester United carries weight.”

In that moment, the picture at Anfield was far from settled. Salah, Liverpool’s talisman and goalscoring machine, was locked in contract talks and his future looked uncertain. Antony claims Liverpool were already bracing for the worst, lining up options in case their No.11 decided to walk away.

The Brazilian says he was one of those options. Liverpool, he insists, made a “firm” offer as they mapped out a potential post-Salah attack. United, led by Ten Hag and armed with their financial muscle, ultimately won the race.

Sliding doors: Salah stays, Antony follows Ten Hag

The pressure around Salah’s contract eventually broke Liverpool’s way. The Egyptian stayed, signed a new deal and remained the heartbeat of Jürgen Klopp’s front line. The idea of a Salah-less Liverpool, with Antony flying down the right, never left the drawing board.

Instead, Antony followed Ten Hag to Old Trafford in one of the most scrutinised transfers in recent Premier League history. The fee set expectations sky high. The performances never quite matched them.

While Salah continued to pile up numbers and silverware on Merseyside – including another Premier League title – Antony’s time in Manchester drifted into frustration.

Salah’s Liverpool career, as it stands, reads brutally well: 257 goals in 442 appearances in all competitions. Even with a notable dip this season, just 12 goals in 41 games, the body of work is immense.

Antony’s, by comparison, never reached that level of influence. The Brazilian struggled for consistency, goals and confidence in a United side that lurched between rebuilds and resets. The price tag hung over him. The questions never went away.

‘A bit of a lack of respect’

Last summer, Antony’s United chapter closed with a permanent move to Real Betis. In Spain, he has looked far more like the player who dazzled at Ajax: 14 goals and 10 assists in 46 appearances across all competitions, one of the best seasons of his career.

From distance, he has now allowed himself to address what went wrong in Manchester – not in tactical terms, but human ones.

“Look, I'm not the kind of guy who gets involved in controversies, who names people, in fact, I won't mention anyone's name here,” he told ESPN Brazil. “But I think there was a bit of a lack of respect there, even a bit of rudeness too, with no one giving you a good morning, a good afternoon.

“Not even that. But, anyway, that's in the past, I won't give much importance to these things. Now I'm here, at Betis, I'm living here, that's the most important thing for me.”

Those are pointed words from a player who arrived as a marquee signing and left feeling undervalued, not just on the pitch but inside the building.

A career rebuilt in Spain – and a what-if for England

Antony’s resurgence at Betis underlines why he was so coveted two summers ago. The sharp left foot, the direct dribbling, the end product – they’ve all resurfaced in La Liga, away from the glare and grind of Old Trafford.

His revelation about Liverpool adds another layer to an already tangled story. United saw him as a centrepiece for Ten Hag’s project. Liverpool, he says, saw him as insurance against losing one of the greatest forwards in their history.

Salah stayed and extended his legend. Antony chose United and fought the weight of expectation. Now he is thriving in green and white, with the Old Trafford years boxed off and filed under experience.

The question that lingers is simple: if Salah had gone and Antony had walked out at Anfield instead of Old Trafford, how differently would English football look today?