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It was a comfortable afternoon for Manchester United as they made light work of Championship high-flyers Reading by winning 4-0 at Old Trafford in Saturday’s early kick-off.
There were several standout performers for Manchester United on the day, but one player who received lots of praise from the fans post-match was Anthony Martial, a player who has been used sparingly under Jose Mourinho.
A fans favourite since he signed, many have been bemused as to why he has not played more often, but this performance will have surely done his chances no harm. Originally a striker, Martial has been pushed out to the left wing at United and it looks as if that will be his long term position. He will be competing with Marcus Rashford, a player with similar attributes, strengths and weaknesses and also a player who can play in both his positions.
The only personal issue perhaps for Martial is that even though he scored and played very well, his teammate and competitor for his position, Rashford, scored a brace and continued to impress his manager. Mourinho publicly praised Rashford’s contributions post-match.
Martial took 4 shots, 3 of which hit the target. He was also creative, making 3 key passes. The other aspect to Martial’s game is his physicality, he managed to win 3 aerial duels.
He got on the scoresheet, but that was not Martial’s only contribution. The Frenchman was a menace for the Reading defence all afternoon and certainly will have made Jose Mourinho consider playing him more frequently.
Here’s some of the fans reaction to Martial’s performance.
Martial absolutely brilliant, Rashford proving to be a nightmare for defenders & goalies 😜 Rooney controlling the game & Mata was terrific
— All For United (@allforunited) January 7, 2017
@reddevils1982 Martial was brilliant needs to play every game imo
— RED ASH (@red_4_life_Ash) January 7, 2017
Martial absolutely brilliant, Rashford proving to be a nightmare for defenders &goalies 😜 Rooney controlling the game &Mata was terrific"
— Iamsmith (@adams4smith) January 7, 2017
At first I said Martial's goal was a good goal but after seeing it again it was brilliant solo goal! He's starting to look good again #MUFC
— Ross Wynne (@RossWynne16) January 7, 2017
Martial utterly brilliant in the build up. Which is why I was so baffled when he didn't play vs Middlesbrough. Looks back to his best. #MUFC
— Jaydn_MUFC (@JaydnMUFC) January 7, 2017
Manchester United spent an awful lot of money on Martial, and they cannot forget that. Mourinho needs to ensure he maximises the potential of a player with a huge amount of it. A run out in the FA Cup is nice, but Martial deserves more than that. He has surely earned a regular place in the team, perhaps not from what he’s done under Mourinho (has he had a chance?) but what he did in his first season at the club. What worries me is whether he is going to be given that game time that he deserves at a club that continues to look for external improvements. Henrikh Mkhitaryan was signed in the summer and Antoine Griezmann is reportedly being lined up. If they’ve got the money, you can’t criticise the club for spending it, however when they have young talent like Martial and Rashford, surely developing that duo would be a better idea that continuing to invest?
That’s the view of me, not a United fan. I’d love to hear what United fans think about this, should both Rashford and Martial be featuring more regularly?
