[luke511]

He's the most inconsistent player in the team at the moment, can't be trusted as striker. Remember when teams had to put two defenders on him because he was that good at dribbling in tight spaces in that first season here, you hardly see it anymore. Regressing as a player.

 

[Tormentor]

Martial is very strange character for me. Trying to figure out this boy for a long time. I am getting more and more disappointed with him.

 

[Offside]

I think he’s obviously got a bad attitude.

A lot of players rise up and get better when competition comes to their position but not him. He was the only striker we had in 15/16 bar Rooney who was done there, and the only striker we had in 19/20 after Lukaku left. Those 2 seasons are easily his best.

He had a poor season in 16/17 as soon as Ibra came in and never smashed it alongside Lukaku. Then as soon as Rom leaves he has a great season, then we get Cavani and he’s rubbish again. Can’t handle the competition. Does not have the right attitude for me.

 

[MattofManchester]

He started well, but got progressively worse over time.
One thing that is striking me about him is how notoriously slow he is becoming at reacting to anything.

 

[Djemba-Djemba]

His finishing and composure this season have been appalling. He's so so bad in front of goal.

But I thought all round he was dreadful. Lazy and sloppy.

Been a huge let down all season

 

[GenZRed]

He has zero football intelligence.

He hasn't developed as much as he should have done since when he arrived. Won't be tragic if we lose him in the summer as long as we can buy a decent winger.

 

[pratyush_utd]

Apart from one moment where he dribbled past 4-5 players, he did absolutely nothing whole game.

 

[Frank White]

He started well, but got progressively worse over time.
One thing that is striking me about me is how notoriously slow he is becoming at reacting to anything.

This was one of my main concerns with him today he was so flat footed to nearly every contested ball, no idea what's wrong with him.

 

[arthurka]

As you can see above, I have already given my opinion on his performance. It's laughable because Greenwood, whilst a big talent has lots to do before he's anywhere near as good as Martial. Cavani is great but offers different things to Martial. I feel Cavani is the back up because our style is heavily based around Martial holding up the ball and linking up play which nobody else in the tewam can do.

Martial is and never will be a player who's hold up play is his strength, it's not good at all, his strength lies when he is facing goal and coming at pace. Martial has been awful this season to say the least and doesn't deserve starting based on his performances. Greenwood isn't any better but there just isn't much between them at all and that is crazy because many here have made Martial out to be the second coming of Messi. He is as patchy and streaky as player come. Like today, Rashford gets hammered because he missed sitters but Martial didn't offer us anything and that's worse in my books.

 

[VivaObertan]

Very quiet, didn't get involved much. Rashford, James and Bruno were so bad that I can hardly blame him for it.

I thought he had a good game. His movement was good, he was picking up nice pockets of spaces and progressing the play. Probably in our top 3 performers for me. How he's getting slaughtered in the match day thread and here is beyond me. Certainly wasn't a performance worthy of being described as dreadful, rubbish, and worthy of being dropped.

How do you watch that game and come to this conclusion?

 

[MadDogg]

Martial is and never will be a player who's hold up play is his strength, it's not good at all, his strength lies when he is facing goal and coming at pace. Martial has been awful this season to say the least and doesn't deserve starting based on his performances. Greenwood isn't any better but there just isn't much between them at all and that is crazy because many here have made Martial out to be the second coming of Messi. He is as patchy and streaky as player come. Like today, Rashford gets hammered because he missed sitters but Martial didn't offer us anything and that's worse in my books.

He actually has some games where his hold-up play very good. It's probably the main aspect where he truly is, and always has been, very inconsistent. He has some games where he wins the ball constantly and the defenders can't get it off him, and then he has some games where he can't win a thing. The fact that he is capable of being so good at it is what really puts him so far ahead of Rashford and (for the moment at least) Greenwood as a striker, as neither of them really offer any hold-up play at all. Unfortunately Martial sometimes has games where he's the same.

 

[MyOnlySolskjaer]

No team competes for a title with him.

 

[El Jefe]

Stumbles around alot
Loses the ball when its played into him alot
Always on the backfoot
Does everything at half pace

Same old Rubbish again. Cavani should 100% be starting over him.

Couldn't have said it better. He's poor and holding up the ball and bring others into play whenever there is pressure on him from CBs. He's better than Rashford and Greenwood at that but compare him to any other striker in the top half and he looks massively inferior.

A talented player but he's proved beyond doubt he isn't good enough to lead this team as the main striker. Too many average areas in his game to be a top striker.

 

[sp_107]

I think he’s obviously got a bad attitude.

A lot of players rise up and get better when competition comes to their position but not him. He was the only striker we had in 15/16 bar Rooney who was done there, and the only striker we had in 19/20 after Lukaku left. Those 2 seasons are easily his best.

He had a poor season in 16/17 as soon as Ibra came in and never smashed it alongside Lukaku. Then as soon as Rom leaves he has a great season, then we get Cavani and he’s rubbish again. Can’t handle the competition. Does not have the right attitude for me.

Agreed. having Martial and Rashford can get us to TOP-4 but to win the league you need something more. Same applies to defence.

What is the fix for this ?

 

[hmchan]

Take some time and look at our posession at 43rd minute. Martial is straying and wandering at the halfway line throughout our attack. It's not about body language or facial expression, he's actually missing from the game.

 

[DWelbz19]

He has zero football intelligence.

He hasn't developed as much as he should have done since when he arrived. Won't be tragic if we lose him in the summer as long as we can buy a decent winger.

I don’t know about ‘zero intelligence’, but in a roundabout way, I do think this is the problem.

I think he has and always will coast by on his simple ability — he’s fast, strong, and dribbles very well. Those factors alone are what have him being a good level PL forward. It’s the lack of general impetus, willingness (and perhaps understanding?) to make runs, and inconsistency in his short passing that will stop him progressing further as a player.

 

[lex talionis]

Just when we all thought Tony had turned the corner, he puts in an appalling performance. The mental side of his approach to his professional responsibilities is troubling.

 

[OrcaFat]

He was a bit below par today but overall I do think he is heading back into some form. Was very marginally off for his “goal” which took well.

I think he is a good player to have as one of four or five first team rotation options. When in form I’m happy with him as a starter and I think he can still lift his peak and average performance levels.

 

[Hammondo]

Really poor today.

 

[KennyBurner]

Once again a lot of you not understanding that football is a team effort. What exactly is martial supposed to do when he can never get unto the ball? He drops into space and neither Fred or mctominay can control the ball long enough to actually pass it forward. If many of you cant see that he will never be good enough for you.

He was okay for me especially watching how much little service he got.

 

[Raven]

How do you watch that game and come to this conclusion?

By watching with my eyes. Are you happy with Bruno, but particularly Rashford and James' passing today?

 

[OL29]

I think he’s obviously got a bad attitude.

A lot of players rise up and get better when competition comes to their position but not him. He was the only striker we had in 15/16 bar Rooney who was done there, and the only striker we had in 19/20 after Lukaku left. Those 2 seasons are easily his best.

He had a poor season in 16/17 as soon as Ibra came in and never smashed it alongside Lukaku. Then as soon as Rom leaves he has a great season, then we get Cavani and he’s rubbish again. Can’t handle the competition. Does not have the right attitude for me.

This post is confusing as he hasn’t really been considered as a striker until last season. His best form came when he was competing with Rashford for the left wing spot, a battle which he seemed to have won until we brought Sanchez in. He’s shown an appetite to fight for his place in the team plenty under Mourinho.

 

[MikeKing]

I thought Martial did well. Not good enough, but had a stunning run and was one of the few that were able to hold the ball up and establish some attacking play.

 

[Raven]

I thought Martial did well. Not good enough, but had a stunning run and was one of the few that were able to hold the ball up and establish some attacking play.

Pretty much our only player who the ball wasn't just bouncing off. Today really was a dreadful performance across the team.

 

[Offside]

This post is confusing as he hasn’t really been considered as a striker until last season. His best form came when he was competing with Rashford for the left wing spot, a battle which he seemed to have won until we brought Sanchez in. He’s shown an appetite to fight for his place in the team plenty under Mourinho.

His best form came when he was our only striker. 15/16 he played down the middle and 19/20. He was hit and miss on the left.

 

[hmchan]

His best form came when he was our only striker. 15/16 he played down the middle and 19/20. He was hit and miss on the left.

Trust me. When Martial plays equally dreadful on the left, people will say his best position is down the middle.

 

[el3mel]

His best form came when he was our only striker. 15/16 he played down the middle and 19/20. He was hit and miss on the left.

He played most of 15/16 as a left winger, I'm pretty sure about that. We started the season with Rooney and Depay as striker options then drifted Depay to the left and kept Rooney as the lone striker, with Martial coming on he played the first few games as striker, but LVG found Depay so bad on the left so shifted Martial there and kept Rooney as the lone striker.

By second half of the season Rooney was shifted to midfield and Rashford became the main striker when he was promoted, Martial kept playing as left winger.

He was considered capable of playing both efficiently but he spent most of the season on the left due to Rooney and later on, Rashford being favored by LVG there, and because Depay was terrible with LVG on the left.

 

[OL29]

His best form came when he was our only striker. 15/16 he played down the middle and 19/20. He was hit and miss on the left.

He played as a striker up until the halfway point of 15/16 I believe but was moved to the left once Rashford came in.
He may have been hit and miss on the left but that doesn’t change the fact that some of his best form came when competing with Rashford for that spot. You said his form crumbled when competing with Ibra and Lukaku but he was pretty much a permanent winger at that stage, so he was never in competition with those players.

 

[OL29]

Trust me. When Martial plays equally dreadful on the left, people will say his best position is down the middle.

This discussion is about attitude, not playing position, learn to read before jumping in and talking shit please.

 

[Offside]

He played as a striker up until the halfway point of 15/16 I believe but was moved to the left once Rashford came in.
He may have been hit and miss on the left but that doesn’t change the fact that some of his best form came when competing with Rashford for that spot. You said his form crumbled when competing with Ibra and Lukaku but he was pretty much a permanent winger at that stage, so he was never in competition with those players.

It doesn’t even matter who. His form crumbles when he’s not a permanent starter and the only 2 seasons where he was were 15/16 and 19/20. Rashford didn’t start starting for us until late in 15/16 not halfway through.

This season he knows he can just get hooked for Cavani so sulks around. I really think there’s clear evidence he’s got a bad attitude but you never know. You can certainly poke holes in my argument.

 

[MadDogg]

His best form came when he was our only striker. 15/16 he played down the middle and 19/20. He was hit and miss on the left.

He was poor in his first season on the left (although he had personal problems at the beginning of the season and started looking better as the season wore on), but in his second and third season he was generally our best on the left whenever he actually got a run. Mourinho stupidly dropped him for Sanchez at a time that Martial was our best attacker, and then then the following season when Martial was finally given a chance again he basically saved Mourinho's job for a couple of months. Unfortunately he did struggle with injury and illness in the second half of that season though (after Ole came in).

He's just in terrible form this season. Doesn't really matter where he plays. There have been definite signs over the last month or so that he's starting to kick back into form but unfortunately today was a step backwards again.

 

[SATA]

We need to spend the money on Haaland after Cavani is done here. He's not a good enough number 9 and only a good rotational left inside forward

 

[Offside]

He played as a striker up until the halfway point of 15/16 I believe but was moved to the left once Rashford came in.
He may have been hit and miss on the left but that doesn’t change the fact that some of his best form came when competing with Rashford for that spot. You said his form crumbled when competing with Ibra and Lukaku but he was pretty much a permanent winger at that stage, so he was never in competition with those players.

By the way, the clearest example of this I haven’t even used. He was having a pretty decent season in 17/18, with two brilliant performances in January that year against Stoke and a great winning goal v Burnley. After that Sanchez came in and he didn’t score another goal that season. So it’s not just competition down the middle it’s literally any competition he cannot rise to.

 

[RUCK4444]

We need to spend the money on Haaland after Cavani is done here. He's not a good enough number 9 and only a good rotational left inside forward

Yeah we need to go huge for Haaland, Cavani won’t be here long and he can’t be relied upon to play most games.

Plus Haaland is insanely good, Manchester United should always be in for those sorts of players imo.

 

[Idxomer]

I think it's a big problem we've had in some games where our no.9 isn't involved much in the game, it happened against WHU and today Cavani barely saw the ball after coming on. Greenwood also suffered the same problem whenever he was tried up front.

 

[kouroux]

Yeah we need to go huge for Haaland, Cavani won’t be here long and he can’t be relied upon to play most games.

Plus Haaland is insanely good, Manchester United should always be in for those sorts of players imo.

Haaland has Raiola as his agent, you sure you want that ?

 

[Andersons Dietician]

Interesting reading the comments. I thought he was pretty good. Could have been better but he wasn’t the worst out of the front 4. Hold up was good, had some really strong dribbles and picked out some decent passes again.
Does spend a lot of time dropping in to spaces filling in for people.

 

[OL29]

By the way, the clearest example of this I haven’t even used. He was having a pretty decent season in 17/18, with two brilliant performances in January that year against Stoke and a great winning goal v Burnley. After that Sanchez came in and he didn’t score another goal that season. So it’s not just competition down the middle it’s literally any competition he cannot rise to.

Yeah I remember this, but he was moved to the right I believe, a position he’s pretty impotent in. But before Sanchez was brought in that season, he won his place in the team back from Rashford with goals and assists from the bench and grabbing his chance when given the opportunity to start. That doesn’t strike me as someone unwilling to fight for his place.

 

[RedIan]

Lackluster and a bit lazy looking today. Too many games he looks like he needs a rocket up his arse. He should study Cavanis movement and sheer bloody effort for the team and learn.

 

[Offside]

Yeah I remember this, but he was moved to the right I believe, a position he’s pretty impotent in. But before Sanchez was brought in that season, he won his place in the team back from Rashford with goals and assists from the bench and grabbing his chance when given the opportunity to start. That doesn’t strike me as someone unwilling to fight for his place.

I’m happy to compromise and say he’s not completely unwilling to fight for his place, he is a pro footballer after all.

But Cavani has come in and barely started, so a player like Martial should be going up a level with the threat of competition but he doesn’t - he has in fact regressed since last season. There’s clearly examples of this in the past even if you can poke some holes in them. He’s a real problem for us at the moment and it’s not down to quality, as we know when the competition is minimal (or Ighalo’s 5 minutes at the end of the game is the extent of it) he can be absolutely top class.