[OpenIntrovert]

No idea why people are bashing Ole here. Martial seems to be angry at Mourinho more than Ole. The statement he made regarding playing through injury, is not a statement pointing the blame at Ole, rather it is a statement proving that he is not a lazy footballer and can play through injuries if needed. Unfortunately the injury situation became too tough.

I feel that Martial's playing style results in him having a lot of injuries. He tends to move with the ball very fast and with close control which with his long legs, is bound to cause tears and other injuries when he is tackled or shut down by the opposition. Perhaps a change of playing style will aid him in this.

 

[phelans shorts]

Shirt number is the worst pathetic excuse. Everything else i get it, but shirt number?

I think it’s more symbolic of the issues with Jose. Jose spoke to Martial about it and then discarded what he said without informing or explaining the final decision. Martial has every right to feel disrespected in that situation, I know I would however minor the issue actually is.

 

[pratyush_utd]

I found the interview genuine. Hopefully he can come back and go up another level

 

[redIndianDevil]

I have sympathy for injuries hampering his ability to perform at his best, and I think he does give 100% most of the time despite the body language.

However, the shirt number sulking is where my sympathy ends. This was a 20 year old, still proving himself. Worrying about what number you "deserve" to wear should be low down on the priority list when you're trying to break into the big time. Ibra had a stellar career and was rightly going to be the number 1 striker at the club, and so Mou was correct to let the number 9 go to him. That Martial took offence to this exemplifies the entitlement players have taken on at Man Utd this last decade, and the scale of the task ahead.

Athletes are known to be notoriously superstitious so for some shirt number matters. More than the shirt number it’s the lack of respect that would have triggered Martial. 20 year old or not they all are equal in the pitch and he deserves respect. Why can’t Zlatan be magnanimous enough to play in a different shirt? Why is it okay for Martial to be pushed around?

 

[redIndianDevil]

I’ve always had sympathy for Martial when loads of people criticised him for his outward appearance. I think the media and stupid pundits play a part in riling up fans as well.

 

[justsomebloke]

No idea why people are bashing Ole here. Martial seems to be angry at Mourinho more than Ole. The statement he made regarding playing through injury, is not a statement pointing the blame at Ole, rather it is a statement proving that he is not a lazy footballer and can play through injuries if needed. Unfortunately the injury situation became too tough.

I feel that Martial's playing style results in him having a lot of injuries. He tends to move with the ball very fast and with close control which with his long legs, is bound to cause tears and other injuries when he is tackled or shut down by the opposition. Perhaps a change of playing style will aid him in this.

He clearly criticises Ole for not telling the media that he struggled with nagging injuries that prevented him from accelerating. However, I would imagine there were fairly obvious reasons why he didn't do that - it's not something you'd want to publicise to the opposition, surely?

Then there's the perception of being unceremoniously pushed to the side once he was recovered. Well, who knows. There's often more to how a player is treated than what his own perception of that is.

In any case though, they clearly didn't handle the situation in a way that Martial was comfortable with. That's a question mark at least.

 

[georgipep]

He clearly criticises Ole for not telling the media that he struggled with nagging injuries that prevented him from accelerating. However, I would imagine there were fairly obvious reasons why he didn't do that - it's not something you'd want to publicise to the opposition, surely?

Then there's the perception of being unceremoniously pushed to the side once he was recovered. Well, who knows. There's often more to how a player is treated than what his own perception of that is.

In any case though, they clearly didn't handle the situation in a way that Martial was comfortable with. That's a question mark at least.

One of the most important factors is reliability. Not only in football but anywhere, really. The manager needs to be able to rely on the chosen individual. Martial is an injury scare + has tendency to underperform unless regularly starting. That's not a recipe for a reliable performer.

 

[MadDogg]

Serious Nothing wrong with your fantasy though

Usually it’s the opposite.

Manager: Are you fit for fight?

Player: Yes of course!

Manager to Physio: Is the player ready for action: will the niggle hold him back or get worse?

Physio: tumb up or tumb down.

Manager: Follows the physio’s advice, but may give a shit if we are talking about CL final or very critical match.

Many managers often put pressure on the players to play through injury (and presumably the physios to accept it). May not necessarily be a straight face-to-face with the player demanding he play an individual match, but just a general demand throughout the squad to make themselves available. The most obvious example was Mourinho and Smalling since it was so public and then backfired so incredibly badly. Jose went to the press and criticised our players not making themselves available or not playing through injury, then a few weeks later Smalling made himself available for the Chelsea match despite having a badly broken toe and proceeded to have by far the worst match of his career (to this day fans still bring that match up when they want to criticise him) and then had to miss a couple of months while recovering.

From everything that's come out, it sounds likely that Ole was doing the same. Just a general attitude that players should be willing to put their body on the line and play through injury for the short-term benefit. Which is fine with some injuries, but doing so with other injuries can have potential long-term effects. Especially if it's constant, rather than just a one-off match. The players agree to do it both because they are worried about the manager holding it against them, and also because they don't want to let their teammates down. It's in these times that they need to be protected from themselves, rather than be encouraged to do it.

 

[MadDogg]

Found it a bit hypocritical that he agreed he was 20 and young and yet implied he should have dibs on a shirt number over Zlatan

There's a difference between Zlatan getting a number ahead of him, and actually being stripped of the number that he already had (and done well in) to give it to somebody new. If it were someone like Ronaldo or Beckham who are incredibly connected to a specific number it might be understandable, but Zlatan has worn numerous different numbers and in fact hadn't worn 9 for six years at that point. It was an immediate sign of poor man-management by Mourinho. Not one good thing could come from it, while it instantly threw a negative at the best young player on the team where it appeared the new manager didn't value him (something that became increasingly obvious throughout all of Jose's tenure).

 

[led_scholes]

What was most baffling with Ole was that while he demanded new signings and amassed a huge squad, he only relied in 11 specific players.

 

[united_99]

Again, just shut up and perform. He is Martial, not prime David fecking Villa.

And injuries are a very tricky topic. If they are serious then the medical stuff should clearly communicate this. However - and I wrote the same a few months before last Euros when Rashford was having injury issues - if the club rests players so they can be 100% fit (which almost never happens as a lot of players play with knocks or minor injuries) but then the players plays for their country despite carrying the same injury, then what’s the point? The club pays your wages and if you are fit enough to play for your country then you are fit enough to play for your club. We have already had enough occasions where players hardly play for us, then go on international duty and then return injured again.
Ole could have not played Rashford. But maybe the medical staff gave their go? And maybe Rashford himself wanted to play because he wanted to get selected for England? And for me the most important: Does anyone really think that even if we hadn’t played him he would have told Southgate that he was not fit for the Euros so would not go? Would he feck! He would have still gone. As he did despite carrying injuries.
If players are seriously injured then they should do a VvD and also not play for their country in the Euros. That’s fair enough.
Otherwise the club is not a charity and shouldn’t rest players only for them to be immediately available for international games.
Oh and it also applies the other way round. I was completely fine with Rashford not doing his operation during the Euros. Because he played through injury for us, then he also deserves to go to the Euros with the same injuries.

 

[Skills]

What was most baffling with Ole was that while he demanded new signings and amassed a huge squad, he only relied in 11 specific players.

He was a hoarder. Its kinda mad to think how little responsibility/accountability he took as manager of Manchester United.

Carrick & McKenna were left to coach the squad - and then took a huge amount of shit for it when they weren't as good as good as Pep or Klopp at it. Ole was left to do man management but apparently he did feck all there as well. Seems like he only worked matchdays and the summers to pick the next group of players he wanted to recruit and then ruin.

 

[Roane]

So he has a problem because MOU didn’t play him and he has a problem because Ole played him ? Off course Ole is not going to come out and say that Martial had covid 6 months ago and can’t run but I still have to play him because I don’t have another striker. What nonsense. What about the poor performances at Sevilla even before the injury

For the bolded bit. When he first went to Sevilla it was documented he had an injury.
He played and picked up another injury but again it was documented that the old injury had not been treated right.

 

[Adisa]

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Playing clearly unfit players appears to have been a theme unde Ole. We have confirmed cases with Maguire, Rashford, Martial and McTominay.

People forget Martial was a fairly reliable player in terms of injuries until 2020. He barely missed games.
Now, I don't get this logic that players should not talk or air their views. I don't even think he has said anything outlandish.

 

[Frank White]

Is funny seeing all these tabloid pieces being used as evidence now Martial as came out and said what everyone thought (well most) but if you dared said this to back Rashford up back then you would be flooded with replies calling it nothing but PR and people saying everyone plays injured etc.... And what's even funnier is the same people doing this now have probably done that to Rashford

 

[ShinjiNinja26]

Is funny seeing all these tabloid pieces being used as evidence now Martial as came out and said what everyone thought (well most) but if you dared said this to back Rashford up back then you would be flooded with replies calling it nothing but PR and people saying everyone plays injured etc.... And what's even funnier is the same people doing this now have probably done that to Rashford

Well that’s what usually happens when more evidence comes to light. You start piecing things together and opinions change, hardly shocking is it?

 

[MadDogg]

Now, I don't get this logic that players should not talk or air their views. I don't even think he has said anything outlandish.

Especially since we're talking about Martial here, somebody who has barely opened his mouth for his entire time here before this. I can understand negative views on players who seem to be regularly complaining, but Martial hardly fits that category.

Is funny seeing all these tabloid pieces being used as evidence now Martial as came out and said what everyone thought (well most) but if you dared said this to back Rashford up back then you would be flooded with replies calling it nothing but PR and people saying everyone plays injured etc.... And what's even funnier is the same people doing this now have probably done that to Rashford

Plenty of people have mentioned the injuries with Rashford. However having those issues doesn't mean that Rashford hasn't had (either through himself or through his entourage) a lot of PR backing him as well which has annoyed people. They aren't mutually exclusive.

 

[Rauður Djöfull]

Should do his talking on the pitch and focus on getting fit to perform. Than when he is retired he can air stuff like this.

 

[izec]

Ole Ole i love you

 

[Red00012]

Did RR say Martial wasn’t in the squad for one particular game as he told him he had a slight injury and was unavailable

 

[liman]

He is speaking bullshit, Deschamps himself never rates him , he wouldn't get called to France NT for world cup regardless

 

[tbtt]

This guy just doesn't know when to speak and when to shut up.

 

[TsuWave]

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This is a really good point, and it applies to a substantial number of United fans. This guy often gets called sulky because he's not doing up smiles 24/7 or because he's not hitting all the passion merchant tick boxes and it has always been ridiculous to me

 

[OrcaFat]

I’ve always had sympathy for Martial when loads of people criticised him for his outward appearance. I think the media and stupid pundits play a part in riling up fans as well.

Yeah. He has been infuriating at times but probably deserved more patience than he got.

 

[mu4c_20le]

Well that’s what usually happens when more evidence comes to light. You start piecing things together and opinions change, hardly shocking is it?

It's shocking that people need evidence to be convinced, and yet still don't apologize to the player having built up all the hate at the time.

 

[mu4c_20le]

He is speaking bullshit, Deschamps himself never rates him , he wouldn't get called to France NT for world cup regardless

That's a bit harsh, he was on the cusp of the NT having been regularly selected just two years ago. Then LVG got the sack and things went downhill with Jose. I knew at the time he must've been devastated watching his country go on to win it. He was on the standby list but didn't make it in the end.

 

[lex talionis]

fecking cluster. We were badly managed by Mourinho and Ole, no one can deny this. But putting out players who were clearly injured is insane. We knew about Rashford but not Martial. But Martial himself needs to take more responsibility for his unfulfilled potential.

 

[Adisa]

This guy just doesn't know when to speak and when to shut up.

Strange comment, considering he hardly speaks.

 

[Jev]

It's weird how some people find it so wrong for a player to give an honest interview. He's not criticizing the club or any current colleagues. Do people prefer players speaking like PR robots, talking a lot while saying nothing?

He's also right about many things, especially the Sanchez signing. Martial had been brilliant that season and then Sanchez came and Martial never played. It was strange.

 

[Pickle85]

It's weird how some people find it so wrong for a player to give an honest interview. He's not criticizing the club or any current colleagues. Do people prefer players speaking like PR robots, talking a lot while saying nothing?

I think it's more that people get annoyed at a player that has perennially disappointed coming out and blaming others for his own poor performance.

 

[mu4c_20le]

fecking cluster. We were badly managed by Mourinho and Ole, no one can deny this. But putting out players who were clearly injured is insane. We knew about Rashford but not Martial. But Martial himself needs to take more responsibility for his unfulfilled potential.

It's not, I suspect managers do this all the time, we just don't hear about it because players usually dont moan about it. Guarantee Martial wouldn't say anything if 1.) we won something, or 2.) Ole gave him back the undisputed 9 as soon as he got back from injury. As mentioned here many times, Mourinho forced Smalling to play and went even further and questioned him publicly about the 'injury'. He was left egg faced afterwards, but I didn't feel there was much sympathy for Smalling at the time. Glad times have finally changed, and people are now taking injuries seriously.

https://www.football365.com/news/smalling-out-for-a-month-maybe-he-was-injured-jose

 

[Jev]

I think it's more that people get annoyed at a player that has perennially disappointed coming out and blaming others for his own poor performance.

Or, more likely, people can't accept that there may be just a few more nuances to the story than their black and white "shit and lazy" narrative.

 

[tbtt]

Strange comment, considering he hardly speaks.

It would've been much better if he had spoken out after scoring a couple of goals. What has he done this season?

 

[Jev]

It would've been much better if he had spoken out after scoring a couple of goals. What has he done this season?

Why is a player not allowed to give an interview?

 

[tbtt]

Why is a player not allowed to give an interview?

I wouldn't give an interview when I am not doing my job properly. We call it "work ethic".

 

[el3mel]

There was never a cult of Ole. Most of the posters who were fine with Ole, supported him because they wanted to get behind the manager, the club and players because they could see the progress being made. We were frustrated for some of the decisions Ole made but overall, we stood behind him as what a supporter should do.

The "cult" happened when tons of negative posters who believe that Ole should not be hired and always bashed him at every single opportunity (even during victories these posters will come up with some sort of excuse to bash him), simply because he was a manager who did not have a style of play that these posters preferred. At some point, it became every unbearable to the extent that we had no choice but to come out and be the voice of reason. Unfortunately, you guys were so stubborn about Ole being the worst manager of all time, that all of us got branded as his "cult" members.

Unsurprisingly, some of you have already started to bash ETH because the team is not playing a easy-on-the-eye style of play. My only advice to you lot is to be a supporter of this club, you are supporting it through victories, draws and defeats regardless of how the result is achieved. It is fine to voice out frustrations, but you must always support with the belief that the team will achieve. If you guys are only interested in dominating football which makes you win every game 4-0, I suggest you go play FIFA. We need fans here, not stock market investors who feel aggrieved that success is not yet achieved.

Cool of you to consider your opinion and those defending Ole as the voice of reason. Moral high ground and all that.

 

[Lyng]

I wouldn't give an interview when I am not doing my job properly. We call it "work ethic".

He is injured? And now we know why he is suddenly injury prone, when he didnt use to be.

 

[fps]

This is a really good point, and it applies to a substantial number of United fans. This guy often gets called sulky because he's not doing up smiles 24/7 or because he's not hitting all the passion merchant tick boxes and it has always been ridiculous to me

But part of being a good teammate is being up for it, showing you care, getting others up for it by your body language. There is only negative body language from Martial on the pitch. Perhaps if he tried to show a bit more emotion he’d give himself a bit more energy to do some pressing too.

 

[el3mel]

Thing is, he did perform. He was constantly scoring or getting assists and having a very good impact from the bench. Had a very short leash though and would be back on the bench after 1 bad game. And then when he picked up form again the following season... We went after Sanchez. Who played like shit, time and again, but kept playing ahead of Martial.

Martial wasn't good in 2016/2017. He had some good games but overall it was an average season. The shirt number is bullshit excuse all honestly, speaks more about him rather than anyone else. It's a trivial thing especially for a youngster whose only aim at this age should be to prove himself. If anything it's the entitled way of thinking of young players at the current era of football, they think themselves as megastars and ask for megastar's rights before achieving feck all in their career. At 20-22 years old he shouldn't really give a feck what number he wears. When he becomes a top player like Zlatan or whoever, that's when he can become entitled and care about this shit. But in this age all young players have ton of money and consider themselves superstars after one breakthrough season. Shit mentality that football clubs helped exaggerate by giving giga salary to these youngsters.

It's honestly still baffling to me that Rashford got the number 10 but that's another talk.

He's right to be annoyed about the Sanchez situation though. No complaints from me. He was playing well back then and Sanchez disrupted the team's balance by being introduced instead of both him and Rashford. Fair enough, this shouldn't have happened. Sanchez was supposed to play on the right not to replace both and Mourinho got it wrong.

But the shirt number ? Nah, bollocks.

 

[el3mel]

Serious Nothing wrong with your fantasy though

Usually it’s the opposite.

Manager: Are you fit for fight?

Player: Yes of course!

Manager to Physio: Is the player ready for action: will the niggle hold him back or get worse?

Physio: tumb up or tumb down.

Manager: Follows the physio’s advice, but may give a shit if we are talking about CL final or very critical match.

You're honestly way too naive. Ultimately it's the manager's decision to play the player or not. He doesn't have to listen the physio's advice.