Many expected Anthony Martial to start for Manchester United against Brentford, but he was named on the bench again.
Erik ten Hag stressed after the match that Martial was not 100% match fit, so he was cautious about throwing him in too early. The manager can’t be blamed for being wary over the Frenchman’s fitness because he has had too many injuries and knocks this season – 5 to be precise.
For instance, Martial made his first United appearance in 78 days as a second-half substitute in the 2-0 defeat at Newcastle on Sunday. Although Wout Weghorst was dropped for last night’s game, it was Jadon Sancho who replaced him and not Martial.
United beat Brentford 1-0 thanks to a second-half goal from Marcus Rashford, with Martial coming on after 70 minutes.
The 27-year-old has only started nine games this season and appeared in 16 of United’s 48 fixtures so far. He has been unable to complete 90 minutes for the Reds since 2021, which needs to be addressed between now and the end of the current campaign.
“No, otherwise he was an option but I don’t think in this moment he is game fit enough to have a start,” Ten Hag said when asked why Martial was on the bench, as per the Manchester Evening News. “And there is also prevention.
“Obviously, when you see Anthony Martial’s record over the last years, you have to be really careful to plan it. So I don’t want to take that risk because I know when he is on the pitch he has a great impact on our performance.”
Let us know in the comments section if you think Martial will start against Everton at the weekend.
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Not really,but for Sevilla match yes I think.