Manchester United have an Anthony Martial contradiction with 17 players giving Erik ten Hag problems

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Manchester United have had a wretched season to date with injury issues, which manager Erik ten Hag has had to work through.

Manchester United sit sixth in the Premier League, a position which really should have a big asterisk next to it considering the injury issues Erik ten Hag has had to deal with.

Here is a look at the staggering list of players in the Manchester United first team squad who have suffered injuries this season – or been unavailable for other reasons.

• Tom Heaton
• Aaron Wan-Bissaka
• Lisandro Martinez
• Raphael Varane
• Jonny Evans
• Tyrell Malacia
• Luke Shaw
• Sergio Reguilon
• Casemiro
• Christian Eriksen
• Mason Mount
• Kobbie Mainoo
• Amad
• Marcus Rashford
• Rasmus Hojlund
• Jadon Sancho
• Antony

That is a list of 17 players who have been out at various points, and among them, Martinez, Evans, Malacia, Shaw, Casemiro, Eriksen, Amad, Hojlund, Sancho are currently unavailable, that’s nine players the manager cannot currently turn to.

All of this is pretty remarkable, and the only thing more remarkable, is that injury-prone striker Anthony Martial is not on the list.

Anthony Martial is injury free

Anthony Martial has been available for every single match this season. He did miss pre-season, which put him behind the curve, but he was in the matchday squad for the opening week victory at home to Wolves.

The Frenchman has had a wretched time in recent seasons due to injuries, which caused him to miss both cup finals at Wembley last season, and caused him to not get any playing time on this year’s pre-season tour. Even his loan spell at Sevilla in early 2022 was wrecked by injuries.

This season, Martial has avoided the same injury pitfalls as his teammates and remains available, a mini-miracle considering the fitness problems plaguing the rest of the squad.

Part of the reason for this is that Martial has been used sparingly, mainly as a back-up forward.

Martial has made four starts, and a further 11 appearances from the bench, totalling 396 minutes playing time, just over four full games. He has just one goal, in the Carabao Cup.

Of course, it’s fair to ask, what is the point in having a striker you do not trust to stay fit that you have to play him so infrequently, and keep pushing your 20-year-old prospect ahead of him, and this is a legitimate question over the former Monaco wonderkid.

Martial should be at his peak now, instead of an afterthought, and his contract expires at the end of this season and is not expected to be renewed.

Martial opportunity

There could be a chance for Martial to really earn his hefty wages after the international break, with Rasmus Hojlund suffering an injury against Luton.

Hojlund is aims to be back at the end of November, but it will be a race to be fit in time for the next game away at Everton.

Everton fans will probably expect Martial to step up and score against them, as he has done in the past, famously in the 2016 FA Cup semi-final, which seems a very long time ago now.

Manchester United fans on the other hand will expect Martial to now suffer an injury, just at the point when he is needed. Let’s hope he doesn’t…