Manchester United’s interim manager Ralf Rangnick has admitted to discussing Anthony Martial’s transfer situation with him recently.
The Frenchman has fallen out of favour at Old Trafford in recent times, and it seems Rangnick is happy to admit that he’s spoken to the player about wanting to seal a transfer away from the club.
Man Utd fans may have mixed feelings about this as Martial has long looked like a player with great potential, though he’s suffered due to inconsistency in his career in the Premier League.
Perhaps unsurprisingly following his recent lack of form, Rangnick says the main obstacle preventing Martial from leaving United at the moment is a lack of interest in him in the transfer market.
Discussing Martial’s situation, as quoted by the Manchester Evening News, the German tactician said: “Yes, we spoke I think it was yesterday (Wednesday), we spoke at length. He explained to me he’s been at Manchester United now for the last seven years and he feels it’s the right time for a change, to go somewhere else.
“I think in a way this is understandable, I could follow his thoughts but on the other hand, it’s also important to see the situation of the club. We have Covid times, we have three competitions in which we still have high ambitions and want to be as successful as we can be.
“I told him listen, as long as there is no club showing interest in him, and it should not only be in the interest of the player it should also be in the interest of the club.
“So far, as far as I know, there has been no offer from any other club and as long as this is the case he will stay.”
When asked about Martial’s struggles with the Red Devils, former United player Luke Chadwick recently told CaughtOffside that part of his problem has been failing to nail down one position since joining the club.
“I think the main problem has been that consistency in terms of, he came in as a hugely talented young player and played in fits and starts. I think it’s not helped him that he had a spell as a wide man, then a number 9, and I’m still not sure anyone’s worked out his best position,” Chadwick said.
“He has a huge amount of talent, but he’s never really scored the volume of goals required to be a regular number 9 for a club like Manchester United. He’s never been able to guarantee that 20-25 goals a season.
“Still, he’s played a lot of games for Manchester United and not a lot of people can say that, so there probably is more to come from him if he’s offered a new challenge. But it’s just that one area, consistency, that he’s never really shown on a regular basis at Manchester United.”