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What's the story?
With most of their star players choosing to move to the Premier League, AS Monaco are now looking to bolster their attacking ranks and are keen on signing former player Anthony Martial from Manchester United, according to reports from the Daily Express.
Anthony Martial failed to impress at United in his sophomore season under Jose Mourinho and has been playing second fiddle to Marcus Rashford at Old Trafford.
In case you didn't know...
Jose Mourinho has stated in no uncertain terms that he is on the lookout for a winger who can provide pace in transition. United have been in the hunt for Ivan Perisic but have deemed Inter's demands dastardly.
However, Mourinho is all praise for Martial who scored 2 and assisted 1 in his 2 outings from the bench this season and has also added that Martial is very much a part of his plans.
Tottenham, Inter and Arsenal have also shown interest in the 21-year-old who was United's top goalscorer in his debut season.
The heart of the matter
Kylian Mbappe looks all set to be moving to Paris Saint-Germain and this will see AS Monaco losing out on yet another star. This in turn will further augment their dearth of attacking options and Leonardo Jardim hopes that Martial can help alleviate the impact of their losses.
Jose Mourinho prefers wingers who can contribute defensively, and this has led to Martial being not given as many chances as he would have liked.
Martial was brilliant on his best day, and Mourinho has urged him to be consistent with his showings. The Frenchman has got off to a flier this season and has scored 2 goals and 1 assist in 2 appearances off the bench.
Chances of the deal going through are pretty slim as Mourinho insists that Martial is one of the players he believes will improve and he has added that he is sure that Martial will impress this season.
Moreover, Martial's family had also ruled out a move away from Old Trafford and if his post-goal celebrations are anything to go by, the former AS Monaco star has sworn his allegiance to Manchester United and it will be tough to lure him away.
AS Monaco have also enquired about Diego Costa and Alexis Sanchez.
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Author's Take
Anthony Martial proved to be a handful to deal with in United's pre-season games. He has brought that form to the Premier League and even though he has played only 25 minutes so far, he has scored twice and assisted once.
This is the most promising the Red Devils have looked in a long time and Martial is very much an integral part of what Mourinho has got cooking at Old Trafford. Even the Perisic deal is said to have fallen apart because of United's reluctance to part with Martial.
As long as Mourinho doesn't sign a winger in 9 days, the chances of Martial leaving Manchester are very slim.
