Anthony Martial's Partial Harmony

Every great magic trick consists of three parts or acts. The first part is called "The Pledge". The magician shows you something ordinary: a deck of cards, a bird or a man. He shows you this object. Perhaps he asks you to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, normal. But of course... it probably isn't.

The second act is called "The Turn". The magician takes the ordinary object and makes it do something extraordinary. Now you're looking for the secret... but you won't find it because of course you're not really looking. You don't really want to know. You want to be fooled. But you wouldn't clap yet. Because making something disappear isn't enough; you have to bring it back.

That's why every magic trick has a third act, the hardest part, the part we call "The Prestige".

The Pledge

£36m for a teenager? Outrageous! Unimaginable!

Throw those statements around in the light of the recent Mbappe bedlam and you'd wonder what the brouhaha around Anthony Martial's arrival at Old Trafford was all about.

But context matters. When United signed, a largely unheard of, Martial from AS Monaco for £36m which could go up to £60m, the English press went all out in their collective badgering.

Mirror Sport famously wrote, "What a waste of money!" and scoffed at the 'panic buy' of the summer. The media went bonkers over the 'abomination' that the ridiculously bloated transfer fee was. Discussions were held on how half a team could be fielded for the same amount of money that United were paying to secure the services of the unproven teenager. Louis Van Gaal was sneered at for improper allocation of the club's financial resources. Ed Woodward would bear the brunt for being, apparently, not good at his job.

Martial's Ballon d'Or clause was mocked before he even graced a field in England. He was, in no unclear terms, cruelly written off.

But as is the custom, the Old Trafford faithful flouted the foreign jeers and got behind the French kid, flying large banners in the stands welcoming Martial to the Theatre of Dreams.

The Turn

An absolute screamer of an overhead kick by Christian Benteke let Liverpool pull one back on the Red Devils who were running away with the game at 2-0. The anticipation of yet another late debacle unsettled Old Trafford in the 85th minute.

The supporters had been looking at Martial, hoping to see him produce a spark of magic they could take to bed at night. When the Frenchman held Lovren off on the right flank while keeping the ball at his feet with nimble touches, the spectators at Old Trafford gasped in disbelief and muttered to themselves, "That'll do for the night." After all, there had lingered at least a modicum of a doubt even among the most optimistic of them.

But Tony Martial was only warming up.

The Frenchman, with his expression stony, latched on to a drifting ball and seeing himself unmarked, started running at Skrtel. A drop of the shoulder that turned Skrtel inside out had the defender almost clutching at the grass. With a touch of fortune to reward his bravery, Martial rushed to the edge of the 6-yard box and slotted the ball past a flustered Mignolet. And Martin Tyler couldn't contain himself as he spoke the words that were at the tip of every United fan's tongue,

'OH YESS! WELCOME TO MANCHESTER UNITED, ANTHONY MARTI-AAAAL!'

Gary Neville followed it up, "Manchester United fans, I've not heard them cheer as loud as that - I know it's against Liverpool but there was huge relief around the stadium. It was a big, big moment for a player making his debut. He'd been written off, almost, in some quarters in the last couple of weeks, before he'd started."

Thierry Henry, the man with whom comparisons had been drawn, described the finish as 'freezing the goalkeeper.'

Thanks to Federico Macheda and his exploits, United were not willing to get carried away. So they anxiously waited for more from Martial. The Frenchman scored his second and third goals of the season in his next outing, an away match against Southampton, and his supple footwork for the former and well-waited finish for the latter was reassuring for the whole of United. They had indeed got their man, it would seem.

A team that were derided for playing boring football would become anything but that once they floated the ball over to the left wing for Martial to pick it up. He'd run defences ragged and invite defenders to bouts near the corner flag, subsequently leaving them chasing shadows.

In an otherwise dull and dry Manchester derby that ended 0-0, the only moments of brilliance were offered by the teenager who was a handful to deal with for a resolute City defensive line.

Martial showed up day in and day out and it was astounding how easily he had adapted to the physicality of the Premier League.

Even when the team was having an off-day, Martial would provide entertain the tens of thousands of fans. He even hastened Depay's departure from Old Trafford because Van Gaal knew who to trust and who to test.

His greatest contribution, however, came later on in the season, in the FA Cup semi-final matchup against Everton. United had taken the lead after Fellaini slotted in a spectacular cross at the end of a pillaging run down the left flank by none other than Martial.

But in the dying embers of the game, with the score at 1-1, the youngster traded one-twos first with Marcus Rashford and then Herrera before suddenly finding himself in the clear, right in front of Robles who had absolutely no chance against the tranquillity Martial put on display. He then darted towards the stands, to the comfort of warm embraces from the Red Army.

Martial wreaking havoc down the left flank became a familiar sight and his first season was straight outta the pages of a fairytale. A dream too good to be true. United couldn't wait to watch the youngster's brilliance in his sophomore season.

Van Gaal was so overawed with Martial's antics that he made him the focal point of almost every United attack, whether it was to instil much-needed pace or to unsettle the stopper backs with his maverick skills with the ball at his feet. In fact, the top goal getter for United, in his first season, Martial was arguably the saving grace for the Old Trafford outfit.

But then van Gaal got sacked. And in came the Special One.

Jose Mourinho does not give a rat's rear-end about individual talent if you're a round peg in a square hole. You could possibly make a spectacular starting XI with all the quality players Mourinho has sold at a club.

Mourinho's Ibracadabra

United fans welcomed their new beacon of hope with open arms. When Mourinho, who is infamous for parking the bus, decided to buy into the United philosophy, the fans started singing, 'Jose's playing the way United should, oh yeah! Something tells me I'm into something good.'

But engaging Mourinho's blueprint in place of the pass-pass-backpass-man-mark system of LVG's was a tactical overhaul of sorts. The Special One employs zonal marking as opposed to LVG's man-to-man marking strategy. Mourinho expects his attackers to lend a hand in defence and track back incessantly.

More than anything, though, Martial's deterioration was because new stalwarts had come in to the team and the game wasn't going to revolve around him.

On the international front, Martial was one of the most exciting prospects among a host of young talent in the French squad. But his dismal showings resulted in him getting booed by his own countrymen and he played merely 70 minutes in the Euro Cup where France ended as runners-up.

Martial returned to Old Trafford all set to take the No. 9 shirt at United.

By then Mourinho had bought Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Eric Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba in his first transfer window. And when Martial had even changed his website design and Twitter handle to announce to the world that he was to don the no.9 shirt at Old Trafford, it was cruelly taken away from him and handed to Zlatan.

But that didn't seem to affect him much as he laid out two assists on the opening weekend in a 3-1 victory against Bournemouth. That, however, was not an indication of things to come. He'd lose his place in the team after two games owing to his inconsistent showings.

The reintegration of Mkhitaryan into the side took the spotlight away from Martial and Mkhi's effectiveness and work ethic, which was widely praised by Mourinho, was a watch-and-learn lesson to Martial more than anything.

Old Trafford, meanwhile, was dying to see their golden boy knock the wind out of opposition sails again. And Martial showed up again.

In an exciting match against Middlesbrough, the Frenchman was devastating down the left flank. He rattled the woodwork with a beastly effort after easing past two defenders to start things off. Another exhilarating run saw him feed a floated ball into Zlatan's path who Taekwondoed it in with his heels.

But the goal was disallowed as it was deemed studs-up dangerous. Martial's relentlessness saw him bag a goal to kickstart a United comeback, a throwback to the good ol' Fergie days. Pogba's goal would come two minutes later and in the 86th minute, justice would finally be served.

Mourinho praised the 20-year-old for his performance but also added, “I know he is a top talent. I know that Mkhitaryan was a top talent and I was not playing him. Anthony has to listen to be me and not his agent. He has to listen in training every day, in every feedback I give to try to improve players. ‘The Mkhitaryan process’ – every day Mkhitaryan’s agent was calling me and saying he will be a better player with you.”

Mourinho demanded more focus on the field and Martial showed anything but. With scandalous revelations about his personal life making the rounds, he looked flustered out in the open. It did affect his performances on the pitch as his scintillating showings week in week out reduced to occasional sparks of genius. In one of those one-off showings, Martial strutted his stuff against Reading in the FA Cup and scored two goals. He scored one in the Premier League against Watford as well. But these stellar showings were few and far between.

The manager wasn't thrilled and he admitted that the Frenchman didn't grab the opportunities he had received with both hands. He added that he could not keep faith in just one player keeping in mind the depth United possessed, with Rashford, Lingard, Mata and Mkhi being deployed alternatively.

To Mourinho, more than the result, it was the character one showed on the pitch that mattered. This was precisely why Rashford constantly found himself in the starting 11 despite the lack of goals.

"Do I think Anthony is a player with great potential? Yes. Do I think he can play successfully for me? Yes, but he needs to give me things I like very much."

And what are these things that Mourinho likes very much you might ask?

Let's rewind to Chelsea's visit to Old Trafford towards the end of the season. A lively Lingard and Rashford ran Conte's defence to the ground as Herrera pocketed Chelsea's main attacking outlet, Eden Hazard. The red-blooded youth were tireless and unrelenting as Chelsea were uncharacteristically bullied.

The attackers tracked back and dispossessed the Blues with tenacity, drawing loud cheers from the Old Trafford faithful. And needless to say, Mourinho loved every bit of it.

The Prestige?

Martial is unlike many of the big personalities that liven up the Red Devils' dressing room. The boy doesn't even smile much. No flashy celebrations, just the good old leap into the air and a clench of the fist. No rococo handshakes. No social media tomfoolery.

Could it be that Mourinho has gotten too used to the big guns? Players who take the harshest rays of the sun chin-up, chest bulging and shoulders wide? Take for example the case of Kevin de Bruyne, who is widely regarded as an ultimate professional. De Bruyne is back in the Premier League after departing from England while working with Mourinho. The Portuguese went on to take a dig at the Belgian's work ethic and attitude. Well, the past is the past and the Belgian playmaker is now a pivotal part of City's system.

Mourinho doesn't have reservations when it comes to criticizing his own team or players in press conferences. For the man who acknowledged the fact that his system would take time getting used to by saying LVG had brainwashed his players, ought to have dealt with Martial slightly differently. After all, he was only 20 and had just completed an overwhelming debut season.

Van Gaal paid no heed to individual expression but Mourinho demands that from all of his players. It is noteworthy that Martial was, perhaps, the only player brave enough to muscle his way out and become an anomaly of sorts in an LVG system.

Persistent comparisons with fellow teammates were clearly not the kind of motivation that drove Martial. The introverted youngster needed to be shown more faith and served fewer 'you're under the scanner' notices.

But that doesn't mean that the Frenchman is not at fault either. He needs to bring back the fearlessness and bravado which used to leave defenders flat-footed. He needs to trust shifting the ball to his left foot more as he charges inwards from the flanks - something which he did to great effect in his debut season. More than anything he needs to trust his abilities to 'take 'em on and tear 'em a new one' like only a select few can.

Knowing fully well that this season will define his future, Martial has been one of the most impressive players for United in the pre-season matches. His obliteration of Luka Modric and the rest of the Madrid defence in a Messiesque drive to set up Lingard for one of the easiest goals he'll ever score was a snippet of class and the sheer genius he can produce when the wind is in his sails.

He showed up all guns blazing against Sampdoria and would have ended up with two assists instead of one had it not been for Herrera's tame header from a sumptuous cross. Martial's impressive run of form has Mourinho looking at him with eyes wide open and it has also resulted in the Portuguese telling the media that the Frenchman is very much a part of his plan.

"Everybody is in the plan. The plan is to have a good squad, not just a good team," said Mourinho when questioned about Martial's potential exit.

"We need options because we have important players injured for a long time. They will be back by the end of the year so our squad is not so big and we need options. We need different players."

"Lukaku, Martial, Rashford – they are all different players and we need everybody."

The almost comatose potential that inhabits the Old Trafford dugout is of Kafkaesque proportions to their competition. If Mourinho gets the wild bunch to fire on all cylinders, United could go back to being the belligerent force they were in the past, and one well worth putting your bets on in Europe.

It is time for the film to roll on and it's time for the magic in Martial to be rediscovered.

The Old Trafford faithful adore Martial so much they cherish even his half-smiles. They are desperate for him to stay and prove his critics wrong.

With the new season set to start within two weeks, the Red Devils are waiting with bated breath for the real Martial to show up again and reinstate the same conviction in the Old Trafford stands the next time they sing, '60 million down the drain as Tony Martial scores again'.

Edited by Arvind Sriram