3 goals now, which is at least is proof he'll do better than Macheda 
Martial as our 9
- Thread starter ivaldo
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I genuinely thought the comparisons with Henry were your typical lazy journalism because they both come from Monaco, are fast and like to drift out wide. But having watched him now, there really are a lot of similarities in terms of their composure and the sheer confidence they display in front of goal. Really amazing for a 19 year old.
Not anymore...well, by the time this lad becomes a star. They won't be able to compete with us financially in a couple of years.
It was never the case anyway. They got Figo and Ronaldo from other giant clubs who could compete with them financially and whose teams wanted to keep. Two players in 15 years do not justify this ridiculous reputation that they can get whoever they like.
We'll see but I think that's about to change. Don't hold your breath though. I'm predicting a few years. Holding your breath for that long isn't healthy.
Really chuffed with this buy. Didn't have much of an opinion at first, because a few Martial v blank videos won't tell the story, and he's not had enough years to show that he has the hunger for it, but boy has he shown us something in his first few matches.
He doesn't seem like the type, but he's strong and can hold off players and do a target man job, in addition to being quick and technical, and cool as a cucumber when the chance presents itself.
I can't imagine him keeping it up and being reliable all the way through the season, though. I would LOVE to be wrong, but he's a 19 year old who's new to the Premier League, and then you have the difficult second season should he coast past this one. It'll be important to remember the promise he's been showing should he start fading.
He doesn't seem like the type, but he's strong and can hold off players and do a target man job, in addition to being quick and technical, and cool as a cucumber when the chance presents itself.
I can't imagine him keeping it up and being reliable all the way through the season, though. I would LOVE to be wrong, but he's a 19 year old who's new to the Premier League, and then you have the difficult second season should he coast past this one. It'll be important to remember the promise he's been showing should he start fading.
What?
In fairness they only got Figo because the laws in Spain changed to were all players had to have buyout clauses. Every team in Spanish football scrambled to get them set up and it ended up in a few big mistakes, namely Figo.
Early signs are promising. I still wouldn't start him every game though. Don't want to burn him out, and can't expect a 19 year old to carry the burden of being our top goalscorer for the whole season. Having said that, I'm more than willing to let him ride this wave of momentum while it lasts.
I would still credit them with that one since he still played for a big, rich club that wanted to keep him and they still managed to turn his head. The weird thing is when people act like this happens every summer when in fact, it only happened once since. It's almost as though the media like to portray one of the sensationalist narratives and people take it too seriously.
Im sure it's been mentioned somewhere in this thread but did anyone else see his control when Dave lumped a goalkick towards him he brought to down perfectly, best control ive seen anyone do in a very long time.
We can only judge it based on what we've seen so far and imo, he's been better than Rooney has performed for about a year. He suits our way of playing perfectly and we look much better when he's in the side. Rooney has looked more and more cumbersome, slow and ineffective lately and if we had a half decent alternative and he wasn't our captain, he'd have been dropped a while ago.
However, he is our captain and has performed at a higher level than any of our other players so we have to assume that he will improve this season (eventually, some day far into the future). Martial is a very inexperienced and young player in a new team and country so we can't be reliant on him in the medium term (next season or 2).
Rooney is still a massive player for us (unfortunately) and Martial will have chances to make an impact but won't be able to start every game.
However, he is our captain and has performed at a higher level than any of our other players so we have to assume that he will improve this season (eventually, some day far into the future). Martial is a very inexperienced and young player in a new team and country so we can't be reliant on him in the medium term (next season or 2).
Rooney is still a massive player for us (unfortunately) and Martial will have chances to make an impact but won't be able to start every game.
agree. he is going to be a massive signing for us though.
The money we paid for him will look cheap.
But he has been tackled quite a bit. Worried about injuries.
The whole idea that we can't blame Rooney for his performances because he couldn't get enough support was rubbish. Every time he got the ball, he did nothing with it afaik. Firing the ball at him 3 or 4 times as much was hardly going to improve his touch.So much for the theory that "even Ronaldo and Messi wouldn't be prolific in that system"
Martial
We've been desperate for a top quality striker for a while and, so far, Martial has played like one. Still no guarantee he'll make it.
Once since? I haven't been paying attention to the debate but I assume you're talking about Madrid buying whoever they want? I think it's happened more than once since, Zidane/Kaka/Ronaldo all played for huge clubs too.
I was making the argument that only once did they get a player from an other elite club that can compete financially with them. Neither Milan nor Juventus were on the same financial level as Real Madrid when Kaka and Zidane were sold and there is an argument that Juventus were not a successful team when he left much like us after Fergie. It is true that they remain the best bet to have the signature for an elite player but the narrative that all they have to do is snap their finger and get whoever they like from anyone is based on on instance in the past 15 years which makes it bizarre especially since people seem to simply ignore that they were linked with plenty of players in that period who never ended up there.
Ooh ahh Mar-ti-al. Say Oh ah Mar-ti-Al
You could easily argue that no clubs have been on the same financial level as Real Madrid for the past 15 years. Both Milan Club's and Juve where elite when Kaka/Ronaldo/Zidane made their moves. It's only with the combination of a new TV deal along with tax laws in Spain which have brought them back in line with the a few other clubs around Europe.
I do think going forward it'll be much harder for them with the premier league sides being able to match them for finances but over the past 15 or so years whoever Madrid have wanted they got.
How many chances do you want to create per game before you remove this notion from your head?
Can't argue with the first half of your post but the last paragraph is factually wrong, not to mention illogical. There has been plenty of cases when the news emerge that there was interest but the player decided against. The difference is it never makes it in the paper in time because there is no encouragement from the player, they distance themselves from it immediately so it never sticks out. We only get to hear about the successful sagas that make it all over the news all summer because they already know the player is interested. It is also illogical because there is no way Real Madrid were not interested in Vidal, Pogba, Agüero, Hazard or plenty of the world class players in the world over the past 15 years especially in the period where they couldn't make it past the last 16 of the CL. As I said before, they are the most likely destination for a player once they're involved, I am not arguing about that. But to suggest that any club can get whoever they like from a fellow giant financially and competitively is simply wrong because throughout the history of football, it very very rarely happens.
Your assuming that newspaper speculation has something behind it, Madrid have been the go to team for any agent looking to get his client a new deal for decades and you can't put much stock in it. Most of the names you've listed they've shown no interest in. Player's they did contact and fail to sign would be Veira/Ribery. Anyway i'm not going to derail this thread any further, as I've said the top 4 premier league teams will have the finances to compete with or beat Madrid to deals going forward so I'm not that worried about the future with Martial.
already our best CF, no need to play him in the league cup in midweek
his link up play is excellent, seems to be an intelligent footballer with his runs and his finishing impressed me the most, the calmest and composure. fitness wise the management still need to protect him but signs are looking very good with this boy.
his link up play is excellent, seems to be an intelligent footballer with his runs and his finishing impressed me the most, the calmest and composure. fitness wise the management still need to protect him but signs are looking very good with this boy.
That's exactly what he looks like: Danny Welbeck with finishing. A fantastic combination.
He is what we all hope Welbeck could become one day, the same way which Herrera is what we all hope cleverley would become.
He has all the attributes of the modern #9, strong hold-up play, good link-up play, pace, the ability to craft a yard for himself in a tight area, and he runs the channels well, oh and he can finish a bit as well.
I love that smug smirk LVG gave when talking about him to the Sky Cameras afterward.
"Fantashtic"
Yup, Martial is already at 19 what we were hoping the other guy would become at some point!
Our new number 9 for many years to come, I hope.
Minus slippy boots
You meant Sunderland instead of Real, didn't you?Overpriced and shit - Real will buy him for £7m in January
Are you telling me we are their feeder club as well now? When will this misery end.
Both have pace, however Welbeck drops deeper than Martial, he's less technically gifted and much less composed upfront. Its like comparing Chicarito and Van Basten because both are natural finishers. The gap in terms of talent is much larger.
Indeed. In a few years the idea of comparing Welbeck to Martial will seem ludicrous. He has a clear talent level which is extremely high and could potentially become a talent on par with the best strikers we've had at the club. Of course, there's no guarantees in football, but he seems to have what it takes to make the most of that talent too.
The difference in terms of talent and attitude is so clear that if we were still in the 90s using the iconic 4-4-2 system than I'd fancy them playing together. Welbeck would be dropping deep and Martial would be the main striker.
And a first touch and technique.
There was one dribble that he went on where the ball was stuck to his foot Messi style past a few players. I was desperate for him to shoot but he did some weird pass instead. Lots of talent there anyway. Love those dead eyes too.
Trying not to get carried away after just two league matches, but he really seems to have all the tools. It's not how many goals he's scored, but it's how he's scoring them.
That 2nd goal against Southampton, he actually sold the keeper one direction before tucking it almost nonchalantly into the other, all in one slick move. One-on-one's can be tricky because it gives you almost too much time to think, and that's where Welbeck, or even the Rooney of the past 5 years, would have failed. With Martial, it's like missing doesn't even cross his mind. There's no relief when he scores, or over-celebration, he's just finishing the job.
That 2nd goal against Southampton, he actually sold the keeper one direction before tucking it almost nonchalantly into the other, all in one slick move. One-on-one's can be tricky because it gives you almost too much time to think, and that's where Welbeck, or even the Rooney of the past 5 years, would have failed. With Martial, it's like missing doesn't even cross his mind. There's no relief when he scores, or over-celebration, he's just finishing the job.
Yep, saw that too. Judging from how he looked up and the keeper diving the other way it was really good finishing. Rooney may be out of a job soon.
I love his attitude and composure, that's his real talent and at 19 it's amazing! I don't want to get carried away but his making it hard for me not to...