Poor Anthony Martial, he just can’t catch a break
Okay, to be fair, he has just welcomed a child into the world which undoubtedly makes him pretty happy in the grand scheme of things, but professionally speaking Anthony Martial is having a difficult enough time of it recently.
The French forward was left out of France’s World Cup squad prior to their successful campaign in Russia, a decision which came as no surprise after a disappointing 2017/18 season, and his pre-season has been blighted with speculation that manager Jose Mourinho is unhappy with him.
Indeed, if rumours are to be believed, Jose Mourinho actively attempted to sell Martial during the summer transfer window, only to be stopped by chief executive Ed Woodward.
With that in mind it was unsurprising to see Martial start Manchester United’s Premier League opener against Leicester City on the bench, with Marcus Rashford, Juan Mata and Alexis Sanchez favoured by the manager.
In spite of this it was probably reasonable to expect – and indeed for Martial himself to expect – that he would eventually make his season debut, especially at a stage when bodies had grown weary, and a fresh pair of legs would be greatly appreciated.
That didn’t happen though and Jose Mourinho instead put his faith in his human insurance package known as Marouane Fellaini, trusted not so much as a fresh pair of legs, but more a fresh set of elbows and knees.
People who are accustomed to watching Manchester United in recent seasons would not have been surprised by this, but that didn’t stop Martial letting it be known exactly how he felt about it.
His eye-roll, picked up by Sky Sports cameras as Paul Pogba took his seat on the bench, indicated that Martial is generally getting fed up with being left on the bench by his manager.
On the other hand, Martial is known for having an infamously common grimace upon his face, so perhaps he was just looking around the stadium absentmindedly, or imagining the rest of his season at Old Trafford.
Martial’s face on the bench 😂🙈 pic.twitter.com/Lyb2eQ0jWW
— James John (@JamesJohn2427) August 10, 2018
