Anthony Martial scored his fifth goal of the season for Manchester United in the win over Aston Villa.
It has taken far longer to get to this point for Martial than he would have hoped, after netting 23 times last season.
The good news is there is plenty of football left to be played this season and Martial is picking up form at a good time.
In his last six appearances Martial has scored three goals and provided seven assists.
Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is pleased to see him playing well and says he has been working to lift him out of his early season slump.
Solskjaer told the club website: “We have spoken about last season and how important he was for us then and he is going to be important for us this season.
“Player’s form is temporary but when you have got class that is permanent. I think he has proven he is class.
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“Now he is getting fitter and fitter and that means he is going to get better and better.
United need Martial to keep this up
Edinson Cavani’s suspension puts pressure on Martial to produce this week in the Carabao Cup semi-final. His goal against Aston Villa will help lift his confidence.
Last season Martial scored home and away against City in the Premier League. In the league meeting this season he was a late substitute in a 0-0 draw in his first game back from injury.
The Frenchman has since kicked on and is finding a bit of form. His link up play with Marcus Rashford has begun to flourish again over the past few games.
Martial is United’s second highest assist provider this season with five, equal with Marcus Rashford, behind only Bruno Fernandes with nine.
This is the side to Martial’s game which often goes under appreciated. Last season he had six in all competitions. He is almost equal to it.
He clearly has his coach’s backing, which helps. Edinson Cavani has been brought in to provide competition, so Martial has to keep playing well.
There will always be competition for places at United and it is a challenge Martial has to embrace.
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