(Football news) Anthony Martial has requested to leave Manchester United, the French forward’s agent Philippe Lamboley has said. The 26 year old has started just two Premier League games, scoring once and has not been picked by new interim manager Ralf Rangnick in either of the two games so far after picking up a minor knock in training last week.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Martial’s agent said “Anthony wishes to leave the club in January. He just needs to play. He doesn’t want to stay in January and I will speak to the club soon”. It’s fair to say that Martial has failed to live up to the expectations at Manchester United this season and has not developed into the player he was expected to be when the Frenchman was signed by Louis Van Gaal from Monaco. Moreover, Manchester United’s attacking prowess is formidable with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Edinson Cavani, Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Jesse Lingard so the side is expected to cut their losses short and let the 26 year old leave if a suitable offer comes their way.
Manchester United’s new interim manager Ralf Rangnick has already stated that it is not his job or anyone else at the club to convince any player of staying at the club. The 63 year old said “Players have to want to stay and play for the club, for a big club like Manchester United, if a player does not want to play for a club like Manchester United, even in the long term, I don't think it makes sense to convince him to change his mind. This is such a massive club [with] such fantastic support, I don't think that anyone in the club should then try to convince the player to stay”.
Martial might not be the only Frenchman departing from the club in the foreseeable future as Paul Pogba’s contractual situation has been at a standstill for a long time and the midfielder is expected to leave for a free transfer in the summer window. Rangnick has already said he has spoken to Pogba this week but the midfielder is expected to be sidelined for another month. Pogba is currently undergoing warm-weather recovery in Dubai after suffering a thigh injury during international duty last month.
Rangnick said, “He is better to come back today, and then we will get to know each other in person on Sunday. We had a telephone call for about 10 or 15 minutes. He told me he is getting better but obviously he is still not fully fit, so it will take another couple of weeks until he is fit for training again and then of course he has been idle for quite some time, so I guess it will take another couple of weeks to get match-fit. In the first instance it's important he gets fully fit in order to be able to train with the rest of the group and then we have to develop him physically and tactically to be fit to play in the Premier League."
Manchester United will next face Norwich City at Carrow Road on Saturday, 11th December at 11:00 pm IST.
