Martial-mania is running wild at Manchester… okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration. But what isn’t an exaggeration is the impact that Anthony Martial has had on Man United’s season when the expectations were rather middle of the road.
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The French wonderkid has quickly become one of the most popular players at Old Trafford and even in the entire Premier League (as indicated by his Player of the Month Award).
So why has Martial become the most popular man in Manchester? Goals obviously, but it’s more than that.
Here are the 9 reasons Manchester United fans love No. 9:
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9. Incredible leg strength
Not many of Martial’s best shots have been rockets that fly by the goalkeeper. But taking a good look at what kind of misses he’s made, it’s pretty clear that he’s usually just one last-moment deflection away from making a giant hole in the net.
8. Family man
At age 19 it’s impressive that Martial is already settled down with a wife and child. Fans appreciate that he is much less likely to be distracted by drinking and partying when he has a family to go home to after a big match.
7. Doesn’t flop
Unlike some top strikers that will take a dive or whine about every time an opposing player touches him (cough Diego Costa cough), Martial doesn’t go to the ground unless he’s legitimately thrown off balance. And he never complains either, he dusts himself off and gets back to the play.
6. The afterburners
All forwards need speed, but when Martial finds his spot he hits the fourth gear and attacks the ball with impeccable speed.
5. Patience of a thoroughbred
Some people get on Martial’s case for hanging back and not pursuing the ball for all 90 minutes.
But it’s a common – and successful – strategy in horse racing is for the jockey to keep the horse in the middle of the pack and not make the move towards the front until the field reaches the stretch. Anthony Martial uses a very similar strategy when he’s on the pitch.
4. Thierry Henry-minding us of a famous scoring genius
A young French forward with a penchant for scoring, acquired at a massive transfer fee, leading a star-studded roster in scoring and high up on the table. That sounds like someone famous, but the name is a bit fuzzy…
3. Opened up Wayne Rooney
It doesn’t seem like a coincidence that the moment Martial emerged into a star and began drawing multiple defenders off of him that Wayne Rooney got out of his rut and started scoring in the Premier League again.
After being held scoreless in the first six BPL fixtures, Rooney now has two goals in their last three matches.
2. Surgical precision
Seldom have Martial’s goals been a boomer like Ronaldo or Messi, instead he hits the ball with great accuracy – be it his foot or his head – and usually places himself between several opponents to get the shot off.
1. Goals, goals, goals, goals, goals
Let’s be honest here: The only reason Martial hasn’t been run out of town is that he can get the ball past the goal post. But he’s doing so at an extremely impressive pace. His five goals in nine competitions since September is more than the uber-expensive Angel Di Maria had in 32 and more than Radamel Falcao had in 29. He also reached that mark of five in less than a third the number of matches it took a former Man United wonderkid named Cristiano Ronaldo… just saying.
Suffice it to say, Anthony Martial has given fans their money’s worth.