Football players are known to be complex characters, packed with layers and the range of emotions you’d expect to see in any human being.
And like most people, the relationship they share with their mothers is best described as precious.
We’ve seen many touching moments involving players and their mothers over the years, with a recent example coming courtesy of Manchester United star Antony.
The £86 million summer signing has had an underwhelming season at Old Trafford thus far, although there have been some prominent displays of his quality.
Since joining from Ajax, the 23-year-old has made 36 appearances in Red, while scoring 8 and providing 2 assists.
The Brazil International looks to have nailed down a position in Erik Ten Hag’s side, and yesterday, he started the all-important FA Cup semi-final against Brighton.
Contested at Wembley, the game made for a tight affair, with both sides more or less cancelling each other out.
The Seagulls did establish their dominance over the first half as they held a majority of the possession while crafting some decent goal-scoring opportunities.
Their failure to tuck away their chances eventually allowed United to seize control of the game during the second 45, as the Red Devils created some lucrative opportunities of their own.
However, United seemed to have left their finishing boots at home as well, and the game went into extra time after finishing goalless.
With parity still maintained, it was time for penalty shootouts in what was basically a pressure-cooker situation.
Both sides scored their first 6 penalties, before Solly March missed his, allowing Victor Lindelof to convert the match-winning pen.
With United in the FA Cup final, joyous scenes followed after full-time. And amidst the jubilant celebrations was a touching moment, shared between mother and son.
As seen in this clip, Antony climbs over the advertising hoarding and walks towards a horde of singing United fans.
He then embraces a woman, identified to be his mother Cremilda Prudencio.
Swelled with pride over her son’s accomplishment, Cremilda held onto Antony tightly and gave him some adoring smooches. By the looks of it, the pair were also exchanging words, in what was probably an emotional conversation.
The clip was simply lovely to see, and we reckon the moment left a significant impact on Antony.
After all, nothing hits quite as hard as an emotional embrace from your mother.
The 23-year-old reshared the moment on his Instagram along with a caption. Upon translation, it reads ‘How good it is to live this with you, my queen. We are in the final!!’
Seeing the respect Antony holds for his mother tucked in the heartstrings of fans online as well.
