Manchester United legends Andy Cole and Gary Neville have slammed striker Anthony Martial for his poor performances over the years.
Newcastle United defeated Man United 3-0 to knock them out of the Carabao Cup. Martial led the line for the Red Devils but put in another disappointing display.
Cole told Sky Sports: “He has scored 89 goals in nine years. When you are a centre-forward for a club like Manchester United, you know that is not enough goals.
“Can he take Man United where Man United belong? He has been here for nine years and he hasn’t done it. It is very difficult for him to do it now.”
Neville joined Cole in criticising Martial. He said: “Sometimes I ask myself the question, when you walk away from a broadcast like Sunday thinking, ‘are we being too harsh?’
“But when you hear that stat that a guy [Martial] has been at the club nine years, a goalscorer that cost £50 million, £60m, £70m, has scored basically 89 goals in nine years and we still can’t get him out the club, I don’t think we are being too harsh.
“I don’t think we’re being harsh enough. The failings of the football department and recruitment is just absolutely incredible.”
Anthony Martial is not good enough for Man United
Martial switched to Man United as a teenager from AS Monaco in 2015 in a £45 million deal.
He was touted as a future superstar and became the most expensive teenager in British football history at the time.
His stunning debut goal against Liverpool at Old Trafford forced the Man United fans to ride the hype around him.
However, Martial never met those expectations. His career has been full of inconsistent performances and injuries.
He has not completed 90 minutes of Premier League football since January 2021.
Neville rightly points out at the end of his rant that this is a major failure for the club’s recruitment and football department.
They gave Martial a bumper contract that made it difficult for them to offload him to other clubs.
The European heavyweights who can afford his hefty wage know that the French striker does not have the qualities to succeed at the highest level.
The two United legends have vented their anger by alluding to a worrying statistic, and they are absolutely spot on.
