Siddharth Juyal
Manchester United forward Anthony Martial is planning to see out the remainder of his contract at the club
Manchester United forward Anthony Martial wants to stay at the club and fulfil his contract until the summer. The 28-year-old’s current contract expires at the end of the current season, ending his nine-year stint at the club.
Martial has struggled to produce decent output for the Red Devils as they have continuously struggled in front of goal. United signed Rasmus Hojlund during the summer to lead the attack and Martial has played as the 20-year-old’s deputy.
However, the Red Devils have only mustered 39 goals from 29 matches in all competitions. They have failed to score any goals in nine games, losing eight of those games in the process.
The Red Devils signed Martial from French side AS Monaco during the summer of 2015. United broke the record for the highest transfer fee paid for a teenager at the time to sign Martial.
The high transfer price came with huge expectations for the team that has seen many legendary strikers. United had Wayne Rooney, Radamel Falcao and Robin van Persie leading their frontline in a season before Martial came.
However, the France international has failed to live up to the huge expectations with nagging injuries and inconsistencies. He faced severe criticism this season for his productivity in front of goal as well as his work ethic.
The 28-year-old has made 317 appearances for the Red Devils, contributing with 90 goals and 55 assists so far. The numbers are very poor for someone who has represented a club of United’s stature for so many seasons. This season, Martial has scored only two goals and provided two assists from 19 games in all competitions.
Sky Sports reported that Martial has rejected interest from Marseille, Fenerbahce and the Saudi Arabian Premier League in January. The 28-year-old is intending to stay and fight for his place while leaving as a free agent during the summer.
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United needs to raise funds to use reinvest in the transfer market to adhere to the Financial Fair Play rules. The impact of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s purchase of minority shares on their FFP department remains uncertain and awaits observation.
Martial‘s eventual departure represents another instance of a talent purchased for an inflated sum but failing to deliver. Something which United fans hope will change under the reign of Ratcliffe.
