Why is it obvious?
Lingard was on loan last season, Martial injured for large parts and James was for the most part sat on the bench.
When it comes to crunch time, these guys offer nothing to the team. I'd swap these 3 in a heartbeat for a top CM who actually contributes. Instead, we'll have some rhetoric about squad depth and the need to keep players, not a selling club etc.
Martial and Lingard would have been sat on the bench right along with the rest of those coming into ET against Villareal last season. It's bizarre, and no matter what Ole says, he still doesn't trust the fringe players to deliver.
The squad is already bloated as it is, we could easily sell Lingard and Martial, and still have Greenwood, Cavani, Pogba, Rashford, Sancho and Bruno in those attacking positions. What have we actually lost in terms of numbers and impact?