Man United have beaten Man City in the Premier League on Sunday and this 2-0 might just be a major turning point for forward Anthony Martial.
Martial was an injury doubt even a few hours before kick-off but the Frenchman was eventually named in the starting line-up and he justified his selection by winning a penalty within the first minute of the match.
Anthony Martial has been really underwhelming this season, scoring just 4 goals in 22 Premier League games so far and over the past couple of weeks, Solskjaer has been using Edinson Cavani up front, instead of the Frenchman.
On Sunday though, Martial looked a completely different player and fittingly, his manager was full of praise during the post-match interview.
“When you come away with a 2-0 in, another clean sheet and a performance like this you’re delighted,” Solskjaer said on Sky Sports, as quoted by The Independent.
“We knew it was a challenge, the first goal dictates a lot of what happens out there. Every game is different but we’ve gone back to what we want to be: more direct and attacking and players getting at them.
“Anthony was superb, more the Anthony of old – and to think he was a doubt this morning, it was fantastic. Same with Luke [Shaw].
“[Inconsistency] is [part of] football; today [Martial] rediscovered himself, really strong on the ball and positive. We want to play at a high tempo but we had to defend well. You’ve got to defend so you can attack spaces that appear.”
Anthony Martial should have found the back of the net himself during the second half but his shot was saved by Ederson meaning his barren patch in front of goal still continues. A goal would have done him a world of good but nevertheless, Ole will very much be pleased by his forward’s effort on Sunday.
According to Whoscored.com, Martial had a 95% passing success rate which is the third-highest of the game. He also managed two shots on target, something that’s really impressive given that Man City were the more dominant side.
Cavani did not feature vs Man City since he felt a slight niggle and Martial has surely used this to the best of his advantages. But what remains to be seen is if the 25-year-old can keep up this same intensity as the season rolls into its final phase.
