Martial's problem is Martial. He just isn't very good. I imagine it's dawning on even the most devoted Martial FC members.
Are Martial's problems to do with the level of the team or independent of them?
- Thread starter Fortitude
- Start date
For anyone who watched this game you must admit that he is not very good. Please explain how that performance or any recent one dictates otherwise. Jimenez for wolves is a far better player.
I think it may be time in the summer to move Martial on and go for a proper number 9 that works hard in the Kane/Lewandowski/Suarez mould, seeing how Haaland has hit the ground running at Dortmund it’s such a shame we didn’t sign him seeing as the fee is said to have only been £20-£25 million.
Don’t get me wrong as I think on his day and fully motivated Martial is a fantastic player and at his best is unplayable but those days are so far and few between that it puts untold pressure on the others to score, our main central striker should be scoring 20-25 goals a season and Martial doesn’t look like he’ll ever be that player for us.
Don’t get me wrong as I think on his day and fully motivated Martial is a fantastic player and at his best is unplayable but those days are so far and few between that it puts untold pressure on the others to score, our main central striker should be scoring 20-25 goals a season and Martial doesn’t look like he’ll ever be that player for us.
Disagree. He is obviously very good but just cant apply his talent and is too lazy. He wont cut it at the highest level
So you would say his biggest problem is himself, then?
Yes. Many players just lack that mental strength and will to play at their best. Imo thats his problem and since he is no teenager i doubt he will change that
He’s far too inconsistent to be our No.9, I don’t ever see him being a regular 20 goal a season striker. He’s best coming in off the left wing but it’s unfortunate that this is Rashford’s best role too. I just can’t see where his future in the team is. His mentality is a serious issue too, when things get tough he gives up too easily.
It’s a shame because I think he’s one of the most naturally talented players in our squad but he just doesn’t have the work ethic.
It’s a shame because I think he’s one of the most naturally talented players in our squad but he just doesn’t have the work ethic.
He's probably tired. I'd say he'd be sharper if he wasn't playing every game. Same with James. Same with quite a few of them. I think that's a reasonable assumption.
Careful now. You will be lynched for saying these things. Martial will score a couple off goals and all of a sudden he's the second coming of Ronaldo again.
I don't rate him at all.
Good. He needs to be moved on. He's not good enough in any position, is on too much money to be a back up and can't be relied upon as a back up either. Him wanting out is best for everyone. Why he was given that contract remains a mystery to me.
Other mitigating factors may be at play too but this is largely correct.
He is not good
What are his talents?
Clearly fed up of playing with crap. He’s not Rashford you cannot tell him to just go out and play. He needs structure and I think the most intelligent already knew he wasn’t going to step up when Rashford got injured. He will never carry a poor team.
Martial has talent, skills, flare, something we all dream and want a united player to be.
However, he isn't consistent, never was, and he needed to show he can be. In Rashford there are glimpses that he can be from the past year.
There will be a time to come where our attacking will click (even if it's under a new manager) and I think Martial won't be in that.
Hard to say it, but we may need to let him go to get a really good consistent attacking force that play week in n week out. If he stays, he will hinder that progress cause we all got delusions of what ifs with Martial, but we need to face reality that he may never reach his potential.
It may have to take another manager with a plan, understanding and vision to have the courage to let him go.
However, he isn't consistent, never was, and he needed to show he can be. In Rashford there are glimpses that he can be from the past year.
There will be a time to come where our attacking will click (even if it's under a new manager) and I think Martial won't be in that.
Hard to say it, but we may need to let him go to get a really good consistent attacking force that play week in n week out. If he stays, he will hinder that progress cause we all got delusions of what ifs with Martial, but we need to face reality that he may never reach his potential.
It may have to take another manager with a plan, understanding and vision to have the courage to let him go.
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I repeat again - this man is fatigued. He is tired. He is injured. He’s not doing the simple things he’s good at. That’s not indicative of team deficiencies or his talent. We know he’s our best forward
He's simply not quite as good as most people on here think he is or hope that he is. It's no more complicated than that. He's not a natural striker - for example I wouldn't be surprised if Ighalo is better in that position. He's decent at left inside forward, although not as good as Rashford there.
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Lukaku was not good enough and Martial is not good enough to be our main CF either. I think that's fair. We can't pretend someone is good enough just because you like the person.
His problem is he has no desire to play for the badge, his teammates and the fans. He will grow old thinking what could have been.
Its hard for him when he's the only goalscoring threat, same as it was for Rashford when Martial was injured. They need some cover and competition. Bruno should hopefully help, if Pogba ever gets fit that would help. We need more than one goalscorer in the team though.
And it'd help if the ones that were playing weren't knackered after playing every minute of every match for months on end.
And it'd help if the ones that were playing weren't knackered after playing every minute of every match for months on end.
Such a quandary. There is a great player in there somewhere, he needs the team to be playing fast flowing football to shine. Playing slow he is next to non existent. Which in itself is a reason for him to not be our main striker. We aren't always going to be playing great football and need someone more rounded for the good and bad times.
I'd love to keep him for a back up to Rashford and a quality striker. However when he is a sub he can be a sulk and you start hearing rumours about him not being happy.
I'd love to keep him for a back up to Rashford and a quality striker. However when he is a sub he can be a sulk and you start hearing rumours about him not being happy.
He is better coming from the left but his defensive contribution is pretty poor in that position.
He has shockingly bad movement off the ball, he looks to get the ball to feet all of the time and is constantly slowing the game down, he barely uses his pace in behind.
Also his hold up play is nonexistent at times, the ball just doesnt stick and he is caught in possession too frequently.
He isn't nearly good enough to lead the line for most clubs in the premiership. Time to move on, he doesnt look any better than he did when he first joined us, he hasnt kicked on at all.
He has shockingly bad movement off the ball, he looks to get the ball to feet all of the time and is constantly slowing the game down, he barely uses his pace in behind.
Also his hold up play is nonexistent at times, the ball just doesnt stick and he is caught in possession too frequently.
He isn't nearly good enough to lead the line for most clubs in the premiership. Time to move on, he doesnt look any better than he did when he first joined us, he hasnt kicked on at all.
As excuses go that is a classic of the genre.
Can't really sympathize with this kind of excuses. Plenty of top attackers around the world play as many games without a problem. Wanna check how many games per season does Messi play, or Ronaldo, or Mbappe? I am not comparing their quality and talent to Martial's but endurance is something all top players should have the same.
If you really don't like that comparison, let's take an example of somebody Martial should be closer to - how often does Vardy rest? So, I don't know... Somehow our players are too fragile compared to others.
I think this is much closer to truth than any other arguments you hear. Martial thrives off of an attacking partner. Without Rashford he suffers disproportionally badly. He also is naturally easier to defend against and shut off for the opposition defenders, when they know most goalscoring is to be expected from him. Not playing Greenwood alongside Martial today was a criminal decision, if Mason was not injured.
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But yet it goes silent when we talk about a manager currently in charge with the lowest win ratio ever incharge of our club.
Rather make an excuse for a player, watching numerous players show their quality over time. Than some making excuses for managers when the only manager we have ever withness is SAF.
I know which is more blind faith.
Can't absolve him of any blame for the lack of progress he's made. But if you look at it closely, I'd say he's about 2 years behind in his development (for his age) due to injuries and mismanagement (Jose). Also, a lot of players have not realized their potential here in the past few years so I'm hesitant to lay the blame solely on him.
Or Martial will go on a dry run and he turns into a bum. The truth is always somewhere in the middle.
Mismanagement?
As days goes it's seems that jose is the only manager that correctly identify his weakpoint (lazy), tried to correct it, but martial scores a few goals and now it's Jose's mismanagement.
A player like martial would get blasted by fèrgie hairdryer, imagine a player who doesnt follow instructions and doesnt run under fergie?
Isnt today what we're all complaining is his movement? Or lack of it?
Martial plays well when Rashford is playing too.
Ain't a striker
Martial is on the pitch, he has played with some good players and some less so......his outcome over these years remains unchanged however.
He’s just not a true number 9. He’s not got the movement or dedication in and around the box.
If we’re relying on Martial to start 38 league games as a striker we’re in trouble but a lot of people pointed that out before the season even started.
If we’re relying on Martial to start 38 league games as a striker we’re in trouble but a lot of people pointed that out before the season even started.
It is true that he looks knackered. He isn’t going to bulldoze through a difficult period of games for you either.
This is very true, on his own like this he finds it very hard. But he could really help himself because his basic positioning and runs seem quite poor to me. This may simply be a case of the team and him not clicking, but I agree he needs clearer coaching and instructions.
He's just not good enough. Impact sub is where he belong,there's a reason why he dosn't get called up to play for France.
Martial, like Pogba are players whose best games come when playing in specific roles and instructions that suit them. A managers job is to setup a team that plays to the qualities of his best players. You don't see LFC midfielders faffing about with the ball for e.g.
Or buy players who fit the managers style. All we have is mish mash of players from diff ideologiwes. I.e False 9 strikers playing with wingers who like to cross into the box. Full back who dont overlap on same wing as slow as feck no 10s. Sample of reasons why our players almost never reach full potential here.
Also if all jose did was call out Martial's work ethic, he'd still be our manager.
As for running around? I swear Fergie bought Berbatov to replace Tevez.
Point being every single player will be playing better if Fergie was managing us.
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Martial's problem is that he's pretty crap unless he has space to work in, and has a diabolical attitude.
He's an inside forward not a number 9, but Rashford has totally eclipsed him as our inside left forward.
He's an inside forward not a number 9, but Rashford has totally eclipsed him as our inside left forward.
We do?
Rashford is clearly a better player than him and works harder on the field/off the field by all accounts.
If every player start blaming other players for his bad performance then whom to make responsible for the team? Martial is top 5 earner in the squad. He has to stand up and take responsibility. He can't just simply disappear in oblivion during the match.
He just needs a coach that'll tell him what to do, when to do it and how to do it. Without that he won't be reaching his potential anytime soon. People see clubs press but don't seem to realize there's a structure to it and not some run around policy.
I honestly don't want to see any really talented player sold from the squad until we get a great coach. Let me put it like this, Eric Ten Hag turned lazy Tadic into a key part in his Ajax side thats all about pressing. Aguero was a old that without workrate he won't be seeing the pitch and told to slim down. When Tevez got to Conte at Juve he said he'd never trained like that before and his burger days were a thing of the past.
Folks, we need a coach that not only has a clear playing side but one that is demanding. It's no mystery that Pool and City players never look sluggish. They are made to earn their paper and given clear instructions on what to do, when to do it and how to do it. If that fails, then we can get rid of him.
I honestly don't want to see any really talented player sold from the squad until we get a great coach. Let me put it like this, Eric Ten Hag turned lazy Tadic into a key part in his Ajax side thats all about pressing. Aguero was a old that without workrate he won't be seeing the pitch and told to slim down. When Tevez got to Conte at Juve he said he'd never trained like that before and his burger days were a thing of the past.
Folks, we need a coach that not only has a clear playing side but one that is demanding. It's no mystery that Pool and City players never look sluggish. They are made to earn their paper and given clear instructions on what to do, when to do it and how to do it. If that fails, then we can get rid of him.
This is what happens when you play 13 match in 39 days. Match every 3 days for last 5 weeks. He already has problems with fatigue and fitness. He just doesn't look fit in last few games but we had no choice but to play him