Antony, a star at Manchester United, has talked about how hard it was to grow up in Brazil. He said that as a child, he didn’t even have his bedroom or football boots.

Antony, a 23-year-old, completed a huge £85.5 million move to Manchester United on the last day of the transfer window.

He moved from Ajax to United two weeks ago, making him the most expensive player signed this summer.

However, the footballer has stated that his difficult upbringing has nothing in common with the “dream” existence he currently leads.

Growing up, he and his family lived in a poor neighborhood called a slum in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

“I was just a humble little boy from a favela,” he told Sky Sports.

“I slept on the couch because I didn’t have a bedroom.” I didn’t have football boots on.

“I lived right in the middle of the favela.” There were drug sellers twenty yards from my house.

“Sometimes, you’d be watching a game on Sunday and smell cannabis coming into the house.”

“There were times when my sister, brother, and I would cry and hug each other while we thought about our lives.”

“There were times in the middle of the night, we were bailing water out of our flooded house, but we’d still do it with a smile on our faces.”

Antony joined the youth team at Sao Paulo in 2010 and stayed there until 2020 when he was signed by Ajax.

He played for the Eredivisie giants in Amsterdam and scored 24 goals and set up 22 others. His play made some of Europe’s biggest teams interested in signing him.

He called the move his “dream move” when he got there and said his “head and heart” were at Old Trafford even though he was still tied to Ajax.

Antony scored the first goal of his United career just 16 minutes into his first game against Arsenal.

Speaking to The Players’ Tribune, the Brazilian opened up on his childhood in a favela.

“It is an infamous place. Fifteen steps from our front door, there were always drᴜg dealers doing their business, passing stuff hand-to-hand,” he said.

“We were so used to seeing gᴜns that it was not even scary. They were just a part of everyday life. We were more scared of the police knocking on our door.

“One time, they invaded our house looking for someone and they came running in screaming. They found nothing, of course. But when you’re so young, those moments mark you.

“Man, some of the things I have seen …. Only those who have lived it can understand. On my walk to school one morning, when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old, I came across a man lying in the alley. He was not moving. When I got closer, I realized he was deɑd.

“In the favela, you become kind of numb to these things. There was no other way to go, and I had to get to school. So I just closed my eyes and jumped over the body.”

In the interview with Sky Sports, he also said that the effort was a gift to his family.

He also said, “It was very emotional when I saw the net bulge and the fans standing up and cheering.” It gave me goosebumps.

“That goal was for my family and the fans.”