Ex-Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney has discouraged the club from selling international Anthony Martial as he reportedly seeks a move away from Old Trafford.
Martial is ready to quit United after his agent revealed last month that the 22-year-old wanted to leave in search of regular football. The France forwardw, ho has been linked with Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain, has become frustrated after finding opportunities limited under Jose Mourinho following the January arrival of Alexis Sanchez. While Martial has struggled to perform consistently, United’s all-time leading scorer Rooney believes the Red Devils cannot afford to lose his quality.
“I think Martial, ability-wise, is incredible,” Rooney – now playing for MLS outfit DC United – told talkSPORT. “But I think it’s how do you get the best out of him? Knowing Anthony the way I know him I think if you can get the best out of him, he’s up there ability-wise with the best in the league. I think sometimes it is difficult to get to know him as a person, as a character because of the way he is. But I think once you do get to know him, you just keep him happy.”
Martial joined United from Ligue 1 side Monaco in 2015 for £36million, potentially rising to £58m. Since moving to the Theatre of Dreams, Martial has scored 36 goals in 136 matches.
On 1 September 2015, Martial completed a move to Manchester United for £36 million, potentially rising to £58 million, on a four-year contract with the option of another year. This was the highest transfer fee paid for a teenager, breaking the previous record of £27 million United paid for Luke Shaw a year earlier, and that Paris Saint-Germain had paid for Marquinhosin 2013 [21] United paid £36 million up front for Martial, but his contract contains three bonus clauses worth £7.2 million each, taking the potential fee to £57.6 million. The clauses each relate to certain accomplishments being achieved in the next four years, including if Martial scores 25 goals during that span, racks up 25 caps for France or wins the Ballon d’Or before June 2019. Manager Louis van Gaal called Martial an acquisition for United’s future rather than for immediate use, and called the transfer fee “ridiculous”, alleging that Manchester United regularly had to pay £10 million more than other teams.
Upon signing, Martial said, “I’m so excited to join United, I have always wanted to play in the Premier League and to join the biggest club in the world is what every young footballer dreams of.” Van Gaal stated, “Anthony is a naturally talented, young, multi-functional forward with great potential. I believe this is the club for him to continue his development.” The fee was reportedly met with astonishment by the French public.
Martial made his debut at Old Trafford on 12 September as a 65th-minute substitute for Juan Mata, and scored the final goal of a 3–1 win over rivals Liverpool. Van Gaal called it a “marvellous goal”. Eight days later, in his first Premier League start, he scored twice in an away win, 3–2 at Southampton. On 23 September, again as a replacement for Mata, Martial scored his fourth goal in four games for his new club, concluding a 3–0 win over Ipswich Town in the third round of the League Cup. Martial’s early impact was praised by former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who stated that “he can do anything”.
Martial won his first individual honour at United as he picked up the ‘PFA Fan’s Player of the Month’ for September, in which he notched up three goals from two matches. A few days later, he gained his second trophy at United, as his strike against Liverpool earned him the club’s ‘Goal of the Month’ for September. He was also named Premier League Player of the Month for September, the third-youngest player to receive the award after Micah Richards and Michael Owen.
On 21 October, in a Champions League group stage match away to CSKA Moscow, Martial gave away a penalty – which David de Gea saved from Roman Eremenko – and later equalised to confirm a 1–1 draw. He was awarded the Golden Boy as Europe’s best under-21 player on 19 December.
Martial was key in a 2–1 win against Everton in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium on 23 April 2016: he assisted the first goal by Marouane Fellaini and scored an added-time winner. He finished the season as the club’s top scorer in both the league and overall competitions with 11 goals and 17 goals respectively.
Martial playing for Manchester United in 2017
Martial retained his starting berth at Manchester United under new manager José Mourinho, starting ahead of in-form teammate Marcus Rashford on the left wing for the opening few games of the season. The forward, however, lost his place in the starting lineup after several underwhelming performances, with the club tentatively attributing Martial’s difficulties to ongoing problems in his personal life. Nevertheless, on 2 October 2016, Martial came off the bench at Old Trafford to score United’s only goal—his first of the new season—against Stoke City, a game that ended in a 1–1 draw.
On 30 November 2016, Martial was recalled to the side to face West Ham in the EFL Cup after receiving warnings about his starting spot in previous weeks from manager José Mourinho,he responded by scoring two goals in a 4–1 win to send United into the semi-final of the competition. Being in and out of the team for a couple of months, Martial was rumoured to leave Manchester United in the summer, but on 6 February he made it clear on his official Twitter account, tweeting: “the paper’s are wrong don’t listen to them”. Martial returned to the starting lineup against Watford at Old Trafford on 11 February by providing an assist to Juan Mata and later scoring a goal for himself in the 60th minute, he was later declared the man of the match. On 26 February, he was named in the starting XI that faced Southampton at Wembley Stadium for the 2017 EFL Cup Final, which United won 3–2. The victory earned Martial his third piece of silverware for United. In May, he won the first European trophy of his career, coming on as a substitute in the 2017 UEFA Europa League Final