Manchester United have been knocked out of the FA Cup by Leicester City this weekend and it looks like Anthony Martial is going to be the most affected by this loss.
Solskjaer chose to use the Frenchman as the centre-forward, keeping Cavani on the bench but once again, he failed to impress as Man United were beaten 3-1 in a rare away defeat. The forward had been in fine goalscoring form last season but this campaign, his form has taken a nose dive and most often than not, Anthony Martial turns out to be the liability up-front for the side.
And according to pundit Alan Shearer, the 25-year-old does not have the characteristics of playing as a number 9 and he did not do any favours to his teammates on Sunday.
“He was very isolated, but then sometimes you need help off your teammates. But you can also help yourself by putting yourself in better positions,” Shearer told BBC Sport, as quoted.
“It was a really frustrating performance for him. When his teammates are looking for options from him, for him to either come short to be the link-up play, a lot of the time I’m thinking, ‘Come on, help’.
“Paul Pogba is looking for some help, he needs a run off the forward, there’s no one there. In his defence, he never really had any midfielder who was prepared to run past him or prepared to give him that little bit of support he so badly needed. He kept on pulling onto the full back for the long diagonal. That’s fine – that can be good – but not every time. It didn’t really work for him tonight and I was really frustrated for him on the sidelines.
“I don’t think he’s a nine. He doesn’t look comfortable in the nine position. He doesn’t look as if he’s got that hunger to score as many goals as he could and should. It was a frustrating performance.”
Anthony Martial managed only 40 touches of the ball on Sunday and this the same number as Leicester’s keeper on the night. The forward has been deteriorating with each passing game and right after Manchester United’s FA Cup exit, reports have emerged that the club are now willing to part ways with him in the summer.
According to the latest report, Man United are planning to sell Anthony Martial in the summer as they look to raise funds for the purchase of Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.
Manchester United are ready to listen to offers for Anthony Martial this summer. (Source: Daily Express) pic.twitter.com/VnuMggPrB8
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) March 22, 2021
This does not come as any big surprise since Martial has managed to net only seven goals in 36 matches across all competitions this season. Selling off the forward should not be a major problem for the Old Trafford side and many experts and fans will be breathing a sigh of relief once Martial moves out of the club.
