Manchester United forward Anthony Martial hit out at both Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer during an absolutely scathing interview with France Football this week
The Manchester United forward joined the club from Monaco in 2015 and hit the ground running, netting 17 goals, but his form dipped a year later when Mourinho replaced Louis van Gaal at the helm, and hasn’t really recovered since.
Martial accused Mourinho of “lacking respect” for him, especially after giving his No 9 shirt away to Zlatan Ibrahimovic without his permission, and blamed him for missing out on France’s 2018 World Cup squad, a tournament Didier Deschamps’ side went on to win.
“He [Mourinho] talked about me in the press, little phrases, a bit like he had done with Karim Benzema at Real Madrid. He likes these little games, but he also knows who he is doing it with,” Martial told France Football.
“He knows that I am then 20 years old, that if I say something, it is I who will pass for the young person who lacks respect. So I said nothing, it was useless. The following season, I was the best in the team in the first part of the season, he brought in Alexis Sanchez and there I hardly played anymore.
“It’s the season of the World Cup and it cost me dearly, especially since the France team won. I should have been there.”
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When Solskjaer replace Mourinho in December 2018, Martial was optimistic about his future, especially after the Norwegian began using him ahead of Romelu Lukaku as the focal point of United’s attack – but when he was asked to play through an injury for four months, their relationship turned sour.
“I regularly played injured,” Martial admitted. “People don’t know it, I couldn’t accelerate during the four months following the Covid season. The coach tells me he needs me, so I play. But, given my game, if I can’t accelerate, it becomes very complicated all the same. The coach never bothered to tell the media.
“Obviously, I ended up getting injured for good and when I came back, finished, I didn’t play anymore. I took it very badly, I had a feeling of injustice, you are asked to sacrifice yourself for the team and behind the scenes you are dismissed.
Solskjaer was sacked mid-way through last season, though his replacement Ralf Rangnick barely gave Martial a look in, and he left for Sevilla on loan in January. Things haven’t got much better since Erik ten Hag arrived either. The Dutchman has used Martial just once in seven games so far this season, as a second half substitute during the club’s 2-1 win over Liverpool last month.
In hindsight, perhaps the Mourinho and Solskjaer years weren’t all that bad, Anthony?
