Martial holds our badge in pride – Image from The Standard


The Future of Anthony Martial

Anthony Martial signed for Manchester United on the 1st of September 2015. Before he had even kicked a ball, the speculation began that he wasn’t good enough for the Red Devils. Costing £36 million with additional fees reporters began to sink their teeth into the 19 year old. United played Liverpool on Martial’s debut where he went on to silence the media by scoring an 86th minute stunner slicing past Skrtel and placing the ball in the net. To pour salt in the wounds of Liverpool, this goal cancelled out the celebrations of a Benteke bicycle kick that had sent the Liverpool fans a glimmer of hope. However, since this day, Martial’s career has not been as smooth as some people may have imagined.

Martial went on to grab 11 league goals in his first season under Louis Van Gaal showing his talent whilst playing alongside Wayne Rooney. But when LVG got the sack, Martial’s game time was decreased and he struggled to maintain his goalscoring form. Under Mourinho the Frenchman only picked up 4 goals in 25 appearances in the league including 7 off the bench. The season ended with Martial battling for his place in the squad with academy graduate Marcus Rashford. Martial (possibly unhappy with his lack of game time) became linked with moves away from Old Trafford including a deal to our London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea.

Anthony Martial had an excellent pre-season campaign at the start of the 2017/18 season showing excellent skill including a brilliant run against Spanish giants Real Madrid where he bagged an assist. This was sure to earn Martial his place in the squad. Martial seemed to be dominantly picked by Mourinho over Rashford and it seemed he had found his old form. All was well for the consistent Frenchman until Manchester United bought in Alexis Sanchez in a swap deal for Mkhitaryan. This made Martial’s fixed place in the starting eleven unsettled as the deemed “world-class” Chilean stole his spot. Martial finished the campaign with most appearances off the bench, racking up 9 goals.

This leads us to now. Manchester United have refused to sell Anthony Martial as what seemed like a guarunteed move to Italian champions Juventus fell apart. Anthony Martial remains with us and now it’s time to see what his future holds. We all hope to see the youngster find his feet and get back on the field but will he do it? Will he leave in January? Martial’s contract is set to expire in the upcoming summer, meaning by this time next year we will know what his future holds. For now, he has the current season to prove himself to Mourinho and the fans. We wish him all the best.