Antony: I needed to leave Man United for Real Betis break

Real Betis forward Antony has been given the green light to face Real Madrid tonight in a key La Liga game.

The Brazil international has seen his one-game suspension overturned on appeal following his dismissal in last weekend’s 2-1 win at Getafe.

Antony was shown a straight red card for a lunge at Getafe midfielder Juan Iglesias and he looked set for a longer ban for the incident.

The red card was classed as being issued for ‘tackling an opponent from behind without any possibility of disputing the ball, using excessive force’.

Real Betis asserted there was a ‘manifest error in the referee’s report’, claiming ‘at no point does Antony stop looking at he ball’, and he stretches out his leg to make contact with it, and had no intention of contacting the player.

The update means Antony has a chance to build on a superb start to life in Andalucia following his loan move from Manchester United in January.

The Red Devils sanctioned a six month loan from Old Trafford, with Antony not in Ruben Amorim’s squad plans, but he will return to Manchester in June.

Mixed reports over a permanent deal being discussed remain on the agenda with Antony already registering two La Liga goals and assists plus a goal scored in the UEFA Conference League playoffs.

United fans are divided over his possible return and Antony admitted a temporary break was  the best solution for all involved.

“Firstly, I’m very grateful to United. I had some difficult times there, but also some very good times, I won two titles,” as per an interview with Relevo.

“This season, I wasn’t playing much. I needed to be well, happy and confident. That’s why I made the decision to come to Real Betis, which was the best decision. I’m very confident here.”