What is Anthony Martial still doing at Manchester United? Does anybody really know?
The Frenchman was called into the starting line-up against Newcastle. And let’s be clear here, this was not because Erik ten Hag really felt he was the best striker to win the game. It was a decision taken to rest Rasmus Hojlund, a 20-year-old striker who is being overplayed because there is no viable alternative.
Anthony Martial is a very unviable alternative. When he comes off the bench, he doesn’t contribute, and when he starts, he offers nothing either.
His display on Wednesday night in the 3-0 defeat to Newcastle was desperately poor. He is just not good enough.
Anthony Martial should have been sold
The moment a player is sent out on loan because they are not good enough for the first team, there is usually no way back. Martial was shipped out to Sevilla at the start of 2022.
His loan at Sevilla was disastrous. Newspaper Estadio Deportivo described him as ‘beyond disappointing’. We feel their pain.
It was a big mistake at the start of summer 2022 when Erik ten Hag welcomed him into his squad for pre-season. A clean slate when he did not deserve one. Naturally his woeful Sevilla loan meant there was always going to be little interest in him in the transfer market.
Ten Hag found out the hard way Martial would let him down, when his 2022/23 season was littered by injuries including problems which kept him out of both cup finals.
This season to his credit, he has stayed fit, but the problem is when he has been on the pitch he just has not been any good.
Against Newcastle he managed only 22 touches and failed to attempt a shot at goal. His biggest contribution to the attack was half-heartedly jumping for a cross and managing to put one of his teammates off scoring.
It was a non-existent performance and most Manchester United fans did not realise he was even on the pitch until he was substituted off.
Rasmus Hojlund deserves better than Martial
Anthony Martial should be leading the line effectively as a senior striker who takes the pressure of Rasmus Hojlund, who as a 20-year-old should just be chipping in here and there.
Instead, it is Hojlund who is doing the heavy lifting, and risks wearing himself into the ground and draining his own confidence in the process.
We can all remember the excitement Martial generated when he joined the club. He was a fantastic prospect. But he is a different player now, totally different. The only reason he is still a Manchester United player is his ridiculously high wages, and thankfully his contract expires at the end of the current season.
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