Cristiano Ronaldo: Footage shows Man Utd legend doing Antony's signature spin as a youngster

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·3 September 2022

Cristiano Ronaldo: Footage shows Man Utd legend doing Antony's signature spin as a youngster

Manchester United fans eagerly awaited the debut of their newest star Antony last week.

The Brazilian winger completed an £86 million move to the club on deadline day following months of speculation, with the transfer fee raising eyebrows from just about all angles.

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But, having excelled under Erik ten Hag at Ajax in the past, fans are of course incredibly excited to see what he can do on the pitch at Old Trafford in the coming years.

Antony arrives with a reputation as an all-out flair player. He loves to take people on and beat his man in the most creative and sometimes ruthless manner possible.

And while the showboating doesn’t always come off and can sometimes lead to an embarrassing moment or two being clipped up and laughed at, the truth is we all absolutely love a footballer with such raw flair and silky skills.

Players like him are a dying breed. And if he can combine his natural ability with a ruthless and more prolific edge, United are onto a winner. It’s been far too long since they’ve had such a direct, natural winger on the right flank, thus the idea of seeing what Antony can do in the shirt is an exciting one.

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Among his book of tricks, the 22-year-old has become synonymous for a full turn he has become known to pull off, which has been dubbed the ‘Antony spin’ or ‘Antony turn’ in online circles – no pun intended.

But what is fascinating is that footage has emerged on Twitter of Antony’s new teammate pulling off the skill, years before the Brazilian was even strutting his stuff at all. That teammate is of course Cristiano Ronaldo – once known for an unrelenting flair himself.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has toned it down with age, but seeing him whip out the trick all those years ago is insane. Be sure to check it out below.

WATCH: Young Cristiano Ronaldo pulls off Antony’s signature move

As always, Ronaldo leads the pack. A true innovator.

Now, what we do know for sure is that there is no set origin for when the skill was invented. For all we know, a young Ronaldo could’ve watched a tape of someone he idolised pulling it off, or saw someone pulling it off at the local football pitch years prior and thought he’d try it himself.

What we can now say, though, is that Antony is unfortunately not the creator of the incredibly unique turn, that is sure to cause chaos throughout the season whenever he tries to pull it off. Let’s see what fans made of Ronaldo’s version of it, way back when.

The cynics among us are already fuming at the thought of Antony even trying to execute such a wild skill in the Premier League.

But if Allan Saint-Maximin can find a way to successfully send defenders to the shops with his book of tricks every week, we have every bit of confidence in the Brazilian to be able to do the same.