According to reporters from camel.live, Real Betis player Antony delivered a stunning performance after his return to the pitch, as if he had never been away. The Brazilian winger has clearly regained his form, consistently posing threats in the attacking third—with the only regret being the lack of a goal.
Reports state that Antony endured an extremely tough summer: he not only missed Manchester United’s pre-season preparations but also failed to take part in structured training, having to rely on his personal trainer to maintain his fitness. Ahead of Betis’ away match against Levante, manager Manuel Pellegrini was asked at the pre-match press conference how long Antony could last physically. He replied, “We really can’t say how long he can stay on the pitch; the longer the game goes on, the more obvious the fatigue from high-intensity duels will become.”
He further explained, “He hasn’t played an official match since May. Although he kept up with personal training, after such a long break, it’s hard for us to accurately assess his physical condition. Anyone can run for 90 minutes, but whether he can maintain match intensity and showcase his technical strengths throughout the game depends on his actual performance.”
However, all these reasonable concerns vanished during the match against Levante—Antony integrated back into the game flawlessly, as if he had never been absent.
Antony not only played the entire 90 minutes but also showed no signs of fatigue. He continuously attacked Levante’s defense: he could overtake defenders on the flank to deliver crosses, and cut inside to unleash accurate, powerful left-footed shots. He showed great understanding with Héctor Bellerín, who is accustomed to overlapping down the flanks. The only thing missing from his attacking potential, pace, and dribbling skills was luck in front of goal: one shot deflected off Giovani Lo Celso and went wide, while another was saved by goalkeeper Mathew Ryan.
Although the Betis star had occasional misplaced passes (completing 33 of his 46 pass attempts), he consistently played threatening forward passes (22 progressive passes). He took 6 shots and completed 3 dribbles out of 6 attempts. His sustained pressure on the right flank left Levante full-back Manu Sánchez barely able to push forward for assists. Moreover, his chemistry with teammates like Pablo Fornals, Giovani Lo Celso, and Cucho Hernández proved that—despite only training together for two weeks—he had never lost his connection with the team.
All of this happened in his first official match in nearly four months, which is undoubtedly a major positive for Real Betis and Manuel Pellegrini.
