What’s the story?
Despite being assured by Jose Mourinho that “if he plays magnificent, he will play against Hull City in the next match,” Anthony Martial was once again left on the bench despite his impressive performance against Wigan Athletic on Sunday. According to The Mirror, the 21-year-old believes that Mourinho no longer sees him as part of his plans and the Frenchman’s career at Old Trafford is under the spotlight.
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After the game against Hull City, the Manchester United manager took aim at some of his players accusing them of “lacking a winning mentality” and The Mirror claims that Martial could be one of them. The Red Devils drew 0-0 with Hull City in the Premier League earlier this week and have now drawn 9 of the 23 games they have played in the Premier League this season.
In case you didn’t know...
Anthony Martial was the most expensive teenage footballer in the world when Manchester United paid AS Monaco a fee of £36 million, potentially rising to £58 million back in 2015. The French international had a brilliant first season scoring 17 goals in 49 appearances across all competitions for the Red Devils.
Martial was considered to be the next big thing in world football, after being compared to Arsenal legend, Thierry Henry. He even scored on his Premier League debut against arch rivals, Liverpool FC after coming on as a substitute for Juan Mata in the 65th minute of the game.
The Frenchman, this season, hasn’t been a regular under Mourinho and has made just 12 appearances in the Premier League so far this season. The Frenchman has now become a second choice option for Mourinho and is now competing with the likes of Marcus Rashford, Jesse Lingard, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan for a place in the starting line-up.
The heart of the matter
Although Martial featured regularly at the start of the season, the resurgence of Henrikh Mkhitaryan has forced Mourinho to sideline the 21-year-old in the past few months. Martial did have a dip in form for a while now so Mourinho picking Mkhitaryan ahead of the youngster makes sense.
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There is no denying the Frenchman’s talent with the ball at his feet but Martial must prove his manager that he still has the winning mentality and perform in the chances he gets.
What’s next?
The young Frenchman has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford with Ligue 1 champions, Paris Saint-Germain, reportedly interested in his signature. Reports also suggest that Mourinho is looking to sell Martial to fund the big-money move for Antoine Griezmann
Sportskeeda’s take
Anthony Martial has two options, either stay at the club and win back his place in Mourinho’s team or find the simple way out and move to another big European club. Thanks to his young age and immense talent, several clubs across Europe would welcome the French forward with open arms.
