Anthony Martial played 48 games for Manchester United last season, scoring 23 goals and providing 12 assists. He scored 17 goals in the Premier League and is Manchester United’s top scorer, but he has only scored 5 goals this season. In addition, only 2 of his 5 goals came from the Premier League, even though he also scored 2 goals in the Champions League. , But his squandering shots, especially in the home game against PSG, eventually led to the Red Devils being eliminated in the group stage. From the offensive finisher to the depressed mood, how did Martial become like this from last season's thigh? What has he experienced this offseason?
To make matters worse, it is not just a bad performance in front of the goal, Martial's overall performance in the 2020/21 season is very poor. Considering that the French forward's ability to connect and score in the best condition is the same, Martial can still have a huge impact in a game without a goal, but only if Manchester United plays well.
Of course he also has some shining points, the game against Leeds, the home win against Leipzig, and his two goals in the league, especially the header against Villa. But in general, he seems to be far from the best. He has a slow dribble and inexplicably wayward shots.
To make matters worse, Cavani showed Manchester United a striker of a completely different level. Martial is 25 years old, he is not an untested young man, he has the ability to match Cavani. However, despite the 33-year-old Cavani playing well, he played only 506 minutes in the Premier League, half less than Martial's 1062 minutes, and shot 14 times less than Martial (18 vs. 32 ), but he scored 4 times.
Although he is brilliant, his goals are far from enough. Solskjaer said last season that he would like to see Martial score more goals, but he has only scored two good goals this season. In addition, when Cavani competes, he has a sense of position and intelligence, as well as amazing work efficiency that exceeds Martial. Cavani makes Manchester United more dangerous offensively because he provides more focus.
Solskjaer has recently changed the lineup. He prefers to deploy Martial on the left and let others lead the team. Cavani against Fulham, Rashford against Liverpool, Mason Greenwood has not changed,But he is another key factor in putting pressure on Martial. Because Cavani is an experienced striker, but can't play 50 games in a season, this opens the door to Martial, and Greenwood is younger than the Frenchman and is a more deadly finisher.
The 33-year-old mentor Cavani and the 19-year-old genius Greenwood are almost a perfect combination of age. As Cavani enters his 35s and needs to retire gradually, Greenwood will really make his progress when he is in his early 20s. Young players can learn from veterans and develop their abilities as strikers through training and offense.
So does Martial play the right wing? He did not show the ability to be competent for this position. Martial, 25, is too old to have a fixed position. He needs more playing time at Manchester United. Unless he can show his ability this season, it will be difficult for him to get first team playing time next season.
In fact, if Manchester United want to strengthen the lineup, they will definitely consider selling Martial and introducing a right-wing player. A man who can control the wing, a man who is truly creative in the penalty area, put Greenwood and Cavani on the front line and gives the young winger Diallo enough time to develop.
Who can Manchester United sign? In addition to Sancho, they can also consider Barcelona's Dembele. In fact, there are many players more useful than Martial. His reputation remains high and Manchester United can easily find a buyer for him. If he can't give full play to his ability to become a world-class striker, he will not be suitable for the ambitious new Manchester United.
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