Anthony Martial put in a man-of-the-match display last night as Manchester United beat Championship high-fliers Derby County 3-1 in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
The Frenchman laid on two assists at the iPro Stadium and was a constant threat playing on the left wing, giving Rams full-back Cyrus Christie the absolute runaround!
SEE MORE: Man United player ratings v Derby: 9/10 Martial pips Rooney & youngster to MOTM
Watch more brilliant snippets like this with fanatix’s FREE sports video news app.
Here he effortlessly dribbles past the Republic of Ireland international before pulling the ball back for Juan Mata to seal victory for the Red Devils six minutes from time.
But Van Gaal is seemingly a hard man to impress. He admits that the 20-year-old was “fantastic” for the most part, but was not satisfied with the way which he started the game.
“He started not so good,” the Dutchman is quoted as saying by Sky Sports. “Everyone is saying he was fantastic, the man of the match. But you have to play for 90 minutes.
“I have said that to him. But he was fantastic after the first 20 minutes.
“I am very happy that he is a Manchester United player because I think he shall be a great player for Manchester United for a long time.”
Van Gaal is probably just trying to keep Martial’s feet on the ground. The youngster is not the final product just yet despite his £36m transfer fee – reported by BBC Sport.
But the Red Devils boss still has some cheek to criticise Martial for an off-colour 20 minutes, when the side that he manages have barely produced a good 20 minutes all season.
SEE ALSO:
REVEALED: Anthony Martial’s true cost to Man United could make him a record breaker
Anthony Martial promises Man United fans BIG SURPRISE… They get excited… It’s a massive letdown!
Wayne Rooney goal video v Derby: Skipper’s stunner best thing Man United fans have seen all season