Manchester United are trying to keep Anthony Martial at Old Trafford for the long-term and have triggered a one-year extension to ensure the Frenchman goes nowhere anytime soon, according to the Manchester Evening News.
Martial, 23, rejected a new contract offer from the club back in October, as per Sky Sports, though talks have since continued in hope of reaching an agreement.
It’s no wonder why United want Martial to commit to a new deal, but at least there’s no leg room to negotiate further down the line with this extension keeping him at Old Trafford until 2020.
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Data provided by WhoScored shows Martial’s prolific record so far this season, netting 7 goals in 9 Premier League games, proving to be enough for the former AS Monaco forward to re-establish himself as a first-teamer under manager José Mourinho.
The Guardian claimed during the summer that Mourinho had considered selling Martial, but there has clearly been a U-turn on that front, with the club working hard to convince the France international to remain.
However, Martial’s agent dropped a bombshell after it was announced that United had triggered the one-year extension clause in his client’s contract. He suggests that Martial and his entourage are unhappy with United’s negotiation stance and are not confident about signing fresh terms.
Breaking | Manchester United triggered Anthony Martial’s 1-year extension until 2020 around 2 months ago, player is currently refusing to sign new 5-year deal on the table, according to RMC.
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) December 17, 2018
Breaking | Anthony Martial’s agent Philippe Lamboley on longer-term contract talks: “I am very pessimistic about discussions going positively… They’ve already made several offers that come nowhere near to what we expect.” (RMC)
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) December 17, 2018
Interesting how RMC claim the clause was triggered two months ago. That would suggest United waited patiently for the right time to announce the good news — a time to deflect bad attention from the club, like, erm, the past weekend.
Losing Martial would come as a major blow for United. Many supporters are suggesting the club needs a full clear out – owners, board, manager and players – but most would like the forward to stay. He’s still young and the sky is the limit.
