During his time at Manchester United, Jose Mourinho publicly criticised a number of his players and one of them was Anthony Martial.
The current Spurs boss had lashed out at Anthony Martial for taking too long a break for the birth of his child and from then onwards, the relationship of the pair was on a steady decline.
And now Anthony Martial has revealed that Jose Mourinho chose to speak publicly about his weaknesses instead of telling the Frenchman one on one.
Speaking to French TV channel RMC Sport, Martial said, as reported: “It’s true that I’d have preferred it if he’d told me directly, there’s no need to say it in front of everybody.
“After that, you definitely want to prove him wrong.
“He didn’t start me during the first few games and each time I came on, I scored. In the end, he told me: ‘You see, now you understand what I wanted’.
“It can get to you. You just want to show him you deserve to be on the pitch.”
But speaking about their relationship, Jose Mourinho compared the Anthony Martial situation with that of Karim Benzema.
Mourinho said: “With Karim, it was not a conflict, I just wanted to help the player – an incredibly talented player – change his mindset, help him reach his maximum. To become a killer, a determined striker. I really enjoyed working with Karim.
“He [Martial] is a boy with a different personality. The thing I can say is that I hope he will reach a level commensurate with his real potential.”
This season, Anthony Martial has been playing as the lead frontman after the departure of Romelu Lukaku and it’s safe to say the Frenchman has not done justice to his talents.
Many pundits and fans have criticised the player for his lethargic style of play which most often than not has made Manchester United look toothless upfront.
