Erik ten Hag’s substitution of Facundo Pellistri for Antony in Tuesday night’s match against Bayern Munich was symbolic.

The Dutchman believed that a substitute player with 323 minutes of playing time this season would be more useful than his record purchase as Manchester United faced the prospect of elimination from the Champions League in the latter stages of the game.

The fact that Ten Hag needed 75 minutes to decide on the replacement was the only surprising part.

Although he has been a constant source of frustration for Ten Hag this season, United’s Champions League exit is not entirely Antony’s fault.

Unfortunately, the Brazilian failed to impress once again against Bayern, making it hard to understand why Ten Hag keeps starting him (apart from pure trust, of course).

In Tuesday night’s opening 20 minutes, Antony got off to a great start, releasing Scott McTominay and Diogo Dalot and nutmegging Leon Goretzka.

However, he quickly reverted to his usual self and remained a spectator for the remainder of the match as United were unable to even manage to touch Bayern, much less land a punch on the Bundesliga powerhouses.

So far, Antony’s career in England has been beautifully summed up by the narrative arc. 

Following ten Hag to Old Trafford from Ajax, the Brazilian became the second most expensive player in United’s history last year after he was bought for £82 million.

After three goals in as many games put critics to rest, United may have gotten their money’s worth from the record-breaking transfer fee they paid for an Eredivisie team.

Looking back, it was the most misleading false dawn imaginable. 

Last season, Antony made 44 appearances in all competitions, scoring eight goals while only registering three assists.

The 23-year-old has made 26 appearances for United since his goal against Nottingham Forest on April 16. He has assisted once and has not scored in that time.

Jadon Sancho, who has been benched from the first team since September, has managed to score more goals and provide more assists within the same time span, which puts that abysmal return into perspective.

Antony has notched more assists than Pellistri this season, despite only starting twice, since April of last year.

Even though they are having a terrible season as well, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford have scored more goals and assisted more assists this season than Antony has in the past eight months.

The Brazilian’s problems could be written off as an investment gone wrong if seen in isolation. In the end, even major teams make mistakes with their signings.

However, when seen in the larger perspective of Ten Hag’s mission to elevate United to the pinnacle of English football, they do raise valid issues.

It took time for the Dutchman to undertake the “open heart surgery” that Ralf Rangnick required and revamp the team he inherited, even according to his most vehement detractors.

Ten Hag, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and Sir Alex Ferguson all had players in United’s back five during the second half of their loss to Bayern.

Nonetheless, Antony casts doubt on that claim. He was signed by Ten Hag just like Rasmus Hojlund, Mason Mount, and Andre Onana were this summer.

Like when he fought for Ajax to get Lisandro Martinez, the Dutchman understood exactly what he was getting with Antony.

‘He particularly impressed in terms of his football talents and as a person,’ Ten Hag told United’s website at the introduction of the Brazilian.

“It’s great that he’s a fighter and willing to win games,” she said.

Antony helped Ajax win the domestic double in his debut season with the Amsterdammers, scoring 10 goals and setting up an equal number of goals in 46 matches.

Similarly, the next season he helped Ajax win the Eredivisie for the second year in a row with 12 goals and 8 assists in 33 games played across all competitions.

He has so far been unable to make the jump to the Premier League, but according to Jaap Stam, that is hardly surprising.

According to the ex-Manchester United and Holland defender, “Antony, he’s not good enough for this level that we’re looking for at United” (Stick to Football podcast).

He wasn’t exactly the top player in Holland, either. 

“He was adequate for Ajax, but that’s to be expected given that they play in a league with a handful of talented players and, with due respect, the remainder of the league is filled with average players.”

While Antony and Ten Hag did stand by the athlete when he was accused of domestic violence earlier this year, they do have mitigating circumstances.

Neither of them could be blamed for the astronomical transfer fee that United spent for him; yet, the latter made it plain that Antony was his top attacking objective.

Despite Ten Hag’s desire for a left-footed player to augment his attacking options, United were hesitant to match Ajax’s valuation of the player.

The Dutchman has revealed that “United will never play like my Ajax team,” so maybe Antony is just a victim of circumstances.

However, Ten Hag might be in for some serious trouble if he doesn’t succeed at Old Trafford; it’s looking more and more probable that he will just be remembered as a pricey bust.