[Shuriken]

Needs a dynamic, hard working, quick left back for that if he's playing on the left side. Something we lack terribly.

With our current strategy, yes indeed. But he isn't necessarily dependent on it.

If we continue as we have though, Mitchell is the only left back available who fits the bill, as it stands right now. Unfortunately, he got a lot less minutes than I thought he would in pre-season, but that's another story.

Back to Martial: I would also like to see him as part of a dual striker setup in 3-5-2/5-3-2, as it looks like we'll sometimes field three at the back this season.

Don't think I've seen him as one of a two up front. Only as the sole striker or on the left wing in a 4-2-3-1/4-3-3, usually.

 

[RedPnutz]

Martial is a very good player and I think he is going to be a star for us.

However sometimes Martial gives me the sort of vibe similar to that player you played with in school, who was very good and above most of the team in skill, but most of the time chooses to dribble and take on 3-4 players and then shoot instead of choosing better options sometimes.

 

[CG1010]

Rashford is just as raw as Martial, if not more. Lingard is the most polished player but talent and quality wise simply a notch below the other two. Either way, neither Rashford nor Lingard are more productive than Martial.

Of course Rashford is raw but everybody agrees on it and hence there is less discussion. Similarly, I doubt you will find ANYBODY who will say Lingard is more quality than Martial. But on Martial, opinion is much more divided because of the way he performed in the first season and but could not replicate it under another manager in the next one.

 

[BringNaniBack]

There really should be a regular spot for Martial in our team. He is clearly one of the few special players we have that can change a game on his own and create something out of nothing. Mourinho needs to give him the chance to develop into one of those Hazard/Sanchez type players who win games for their team as right now we lack that player.

I just can't see him being played consistently if we are going to be playing a 3-5-2. I don't see him playing at LWB so that only leaves 2 attacking positions that he can play. Lukaku will take the main striker spot while Mhki, Mata, Rashford, Lingard and Martial will likely be fighting out for the other attacking position leaving many of them on the bench.

I know Mourniho is likely going to vary the system and formation this season but i'll be interested to see how he manages to use all of our attacking players.

 

[redIndianDevil]

I dunno man. First and foremost I absolutely agree that you have to give offensive players more license to lose the ball because they try riskier stuff. But when do you reach the point where they lose it too often? For me, that's Martial right now.

None of our other options do much better than Martial, the likes of Rashford, Miki, Lingard lose possession just as often as Martial does. IMO I think Martial's looks plays a main role in some of the critics, he has that lazy, disinterested look about him just like Ozil.

In games where you dominate possession it's not too bad, because you know that more opportunities will come. However, in the big games you may only get 1 or 2 opportunities and given Martial's current hit rate I'd fancy him to waste those 2 chances at the moment rather than take them.

Even the likes of Messi, Ronaldo will miss if you just create 1 or 2 chances in a match, the problem here is not with Martial it's with our inability to create more chances as a team.

Yeah, I didn't see an excellent performance either. It's weird. In his last game he was far too direct, ran down blind alleys and took on shots when the better option was to pass. This time he was the opposite. Always looking to pass when he had good opportunities to shoot.

We just scored one goal in the second half, Martial created it. Then what do you make of the performances of Mata, Rashford etc?

Plus there was the perennial problem of him being static. He almost never makes any runs in behind. Just stands on the wing and waits for passes in to his feet. Which is well and good when he's up against some mediocre defenders like he was last night but won't work against tougher opposition. This will be spun by his defenders on here into "he's always double-teamed" but the reason he so rarely gets one vs one is because he doesn't make the runs necessary to create those situations.

Our team is still disjointed and our "pass and move" is extremely slow to that of City/Liverpool etc, this being static is not the only fault of Martial it's the entire team's, it's a coaching issue IMO, the one we still haven't fixed since SAF left. Under Moyes we were too slow and static, same under LvG and the same under Mourinho now.

It's so damn frustrating to watch because his feet are so quick he could rinse a single defender without thinking but he's constantly up against two or three of them because of his own failings in terms of finding some space to operate. All of which means it takes an absurdly high class bit of dribbling (as we saw against Madrid) for him to get to the byline, when a simple give and go could create the same situation, if he was a bit quicker off the mark.

If he ends up going wide instead of going inside, he still has no option apart from putting a cross in or passing back to the fullback, but if he cuts in and our LB overlaps, he has two options to pass it to the LB to cross or pass it to our striker or an attacking midfielder. This is how all currently successful teams attack.

 

[Pogue Mahone]

I don't think you understood my point. Not getting into a multi-quote discussion though. Happy to agree to disagree.

 

[Dobbs]

See his crossing ability is being questioned.

As a right footed player on the left you're never going to see him running at pace and providing great delivery with his weak foot. That's the case for the vast majority of footballers.

Equally his game isn't about checking inside and swinging a cross in with his right. He's not Ashley Young. Thankfully.

 

[Adnan]

He needs to have more variety/unpredictability to his game or else I feel he'll be snuffed out by the top teams.

He kept on dribbling on the inside on alot of occasions yesterday straight into traffic when there was space to be exploited on the outside. It's easy to see why Mourinho wants Perisic who has shown he can be threatening on the inside and out as far as dribbling with ball and being two footed.

Martial is exceptionally talented and potentially a world beater no question. But I hope we don't put all our eggs into one basket and get the attacker Mourinho wants to give us more unpredictability, especially against the top teams.

 

[Wade3]

Of course Rashford is raw but everybody agrees on it and hence there is less discussion. Similarly, I doubt you will find ANYBODY who will say Lingard is more quality than Martial. But on Martial, opinion is much more divided because of the way he performed in the first season and but could not replicate it under another manager in the next one.

Except they should be treated the same as they both play the same amount of games/minutes.

 

[Redcy]

See his crossing ability is being questioned.

As a right footed player on the left you're never going to see him running at pace and providing great delivery with his weak foot. That's the case for the vast majority of footballers.

Equally his game isn't about checking inside and swinging a cross in with his right. He's not Ashley Young. Thankfully.

And this is the problem, playing on the left he cant vary his attacking, good defensive teams worked it out last year and shuffled him on the outside, which because he has no other choices means he either runs blind alleys or has to play the ball backwards.

I think I would rather see him as the second striker in a 352, from that role I feel he would be very dangerous, hopefully he will get a chance to play there this year.

 

[Home&Away]

And this is the problem, playing on the left he cant vary his attacking, good defensive teams worked it out last year and shuffled him on the outside, which because he has no other choices means he either runs blind alleys or has to play the ball backwards.

I think I would rather see him as the second striker in a 352, from that role I feel he would be very dangerous, hopefully he will get a chance to play there this year.

This is what he was bought for - to be a central striker. He is much less predictable in the central areas. He might have grown up on the wings - but he isn't going to grow anymore there.

Though it was just a number - he was our number 9 during his best season.

You look at the 352 - and you see where mkhitrayan ended up consistently was coming late in to the box or utilising the space behind lukaku - that is where martial even Rashford should be; not on the wings

 

[Home&Away]

He needs to have more variety/unpredictability to his game or else I feel he'll be snuffed out by the top teams.

He kept on dribbling on the inside on alot of occasions yesterday straight into traffic when there was space to be exploited on the outside. It's easy to see why Mourinho wants Perisic who has shown he can be threatening on the inside and out as far as dribbling with ball and being two footed.

Martial is exceptionally talented and potentially a world beater no question. But I hope we don't put all our eggs into one basket and get the attacker Mourinho wants to give us more unpredictability, especially against the top teams.

Unpredictable = martial in the centre

It's possible that it's José 's predictability that is making martial very readable on the field

 

[Dobbs]

And this is the problem, playing on the left he cant vary his attacking, good defensive teams worked it out last year and shuffled him on the outside, which because he has no other choices means he either runs blind alleys or has to play the ball backwards.

I think I would rather see him as the second striker in a 352, from that role I feel he would be very dangerous, hopefully he will get a chance to play there this year.

I agree in general but I think he does have some variety to his game.

The bigger problem is how slow and laboured the teams passing has been. People blame Martial's movement but to get your winger in a one on one situation the ball has to be zipped about with accuracy. If the team does that this season Martial can thrive on the left. Though I agree long term he's a central player.

 

[Adnan]

N

Unpredictable = martial in the centre

It's possible that it's José 's predictability that is making martial very readable on the field

If I'm not mistaken, he was more impressive as a wide forward rather than a central forward at Monaco.

 

[Home&Away]

N

If I'm not mistaken, he was more impressive as a wide forward rather than a central forward at Monaco.

Again that's at Monaco - and how he was bought up in his natural position. His best performance of his career came under LVG as a striker centrally. He was only moved to LW half way through second season to accommodate Rashford.

 

[Adnan]

Again that's at Monaco - and how he was bought up in his natural position. His best performance of his career came under LVG as a striker centrally. He was only moved to LW half way through second season to accommodate Rashford.

If my memory serves me right, he was moved from the striker role pretty early and there were many people on here who said he was better as a inverted wide player including myself at the time.

 

[Smores]

He's the new Kagawa in that his faults are passed off as being the fault of our system or other players with the glorious expectation that if he was just used correctly he'd be amazing.

His season will depend on how much he learns to utilise Lukaku. Lukaku should afford him space its whether he can learn to make the most of it or whether he continues to need ball to feet and tries to take on 4 men.

 

[Giant Midget]

If my memory serves me right, he was moved from the striker role pretty early and there were many people on here who said he was better as a inverted wide player including myself at the time.

Yup. Don't like Martial as a striker because his movement is really poor. He doesn't run in behind as much as a player of his pace should be doing, and his hold-up play isn't that special either. Doesn't really strike me as a player to be the #9 for United unless he adds a lot of qualities he lacks at the moment.

 

[iamjacks]

What frustrates me about most players who are comfortable with the ball at their feet, running at defenders, is a lack of decisiveness and bravery.

The best have it, and I think you'll find earlier in their careers they all no doubt frustrated, but all it takes is 1 successful take on or snap shot/cross to make everyone forget about the previous 5 failed ones.

Hazard, you can see there's an arrogance about him when he has the ball. He knows he can beat most defenders by simply fronting them up aggressively, running at that with pace an purpose and confident enough in his ability to shift he ball left or right in the split second of indecision from that defender. Exactly the same with Messi, Neymar, Robben...

Even lesser players like Zaha and Bolasie know that their pace and power combined with a little bravery will deliver something eventually.

Martial in his first season was unpredictable and brave. Force him onto his left foot? He'd go left and get a ball in the box. Force him onto his right and he'd be making the keeper work. He lost that confidence last season, and it's down to him to get it back and Mourinho to encourage allow it to flourish.

 

[Kag]

I'm not sure why he's being criticised, but I guess it's part and parcel of the micro analysis of his game. He's had a good pre season and looks like he's coming into some form. Infact, during the back end of the season he was beginning to show signs of getting back to his old self.

I think there is this unrealistic expectation of Martial every time he picks up the ball. We all know he can dribble. But that doesn't mean to say he is going to be successful every time he picks up the ball on the left. If he was (and nobody is) he'd be the chief architect of four or five goals per game.

In 45 minutes last night (even I'm falling into this trap of micro analysing him!) he created a good chance for Herrera, was unlucky not to hit Fellaini's head with a lovely little dink, assisted a goal and caused problems for the opposition right back. That's what he's all about. What we can't expect him to do is repeatedly make a mockery of the same full back for over 90 minutes. It isn't practical.

He needs games. He needs to start consecutive games without being dropped for little to no reason. Some will argue that didn't/doesn't happen, but it has. Middlesborough last season being the standout example. He won us the match and didn't get a sniff for a few games after.

The only real critique of Martial that has any validity is that of his movement. It's comfortably his biggest weakness and it's why I don't think he's a striker. I don't think movement can be taught either. It's more of an innate quality that is generally reflected through just being 'there' at the right times. He can improve on it, however, in time.

Mourinho has a gem here and it's up to the pair of them to make it work. On the basis of this pre season I think we can be optimistic.

 

[Santoryo]

Some of you need to look at yourselves in the mirror and stop for a second of you haven't realised how ridiculously microanalysed Martial is getting on these boards.

People are hell bent in finding reason in everything the manager does so they convince themselves that all the problems lie with Martial.

Complaining about an attacking player losing possession while trying to make things happen is just another wierd example of how ridiculous this place has gotten.

Some missed passes which happen to anyone and I mean anyone which are often regarded as part of a game have now become a stick to whip Martial with.

The mentality has simply shifted with some public statements from the manager.

I noticed how people have stopped being critical of Rashford wasteful plays since he received a lot of praise from Mourinho. His quiet and average games are ignored while his good games are revelled while Martial get mauled for having quite games after coming into games 20 minutes from times and his good games are met with microanalysed opinion and backhand compliments.

People have found excuses for Lingard abysmal numbers to justify Mourinho preferring him.

Martial being the unlucky one, received public criticisms from his manager and the Caf completely turned on him.

He gets asked to do more or face the likelihood of being sold while the likes of Rashford l, Lingard, Miki aren't being asked to do more or face the axe by Caftards.

You now read how Martial is a break season or he's sold while the rest aren't given such hard time. All of this despite Martial in spite of being the least favored managed to contribute more than his fellow attackers.

People are using running, working hard and all those intangible as excuses to justify preferring(Mou) the likes of Lingard and Rashford over Martial.

People claim that Rashford did well last season, Lingard is rightly trusted by the manager and Martial was poor and another sloopy season he should be sold. Yet in reality Martial in the very season where he's called poor has put in better numbers than the others despite the latter getting more leaways.
Truly baffling.

 

[SATA]

Good to see he's smiling alot more these days whether on the pitch or during training. Him and Jose were on a personal competition of depression last season

 

[Fracture90]

CAF is a strange place. We got a top talent, potential top 3 player in the world and still we tend to play to his weaknesses (asking for him to play wide, send more crosses in with both feet, stretch the defence wide and make runs in behind even tho he rarely if ever gets the ball to when he makes them) instead playing to his strength to get the best out of him (get him a proper support on LB, play him more centrally, cut some of the defensive duties to preserve energy, play him with players that can actually send a through ball).

It's like telling Messi to play only defence and focus on aerial duels...

 

[Valencia Shin Crosses]

I'm not sure why he's being criticised, but I guess it's part and parcel of the micro analysis of his game. He's had a good pre season and looks like he's coming into some form. Infact, during the back end of the season he was beginning to show signs of getting back to his old self.

I think there is this unrealistic expectation of Martial every time he picks up the ball. We all know he can dribble. But that doesn't mean to say he is going to be successful every time he picks up the ball on the left. If he was (and nobody is) he'd be the chief architect of four or five goals per game.

In 45 minutes last night (even I'm falling into this trap of micro analysing him!) he created a good chance for Herrera, was unlucky not to hit Fellaini's head with a lovely little dink, assisted a goal and caused problems for the opposition right back. That's what he's all about. What we can't expect him to do is repeatedly make a mockery of the same full back for over 90 minutes. It isn't practical.

He needs games. He needs to start consecutive games without being dropped for little to no reason. Some will argue that didn't/doesn't happen, but it has. Middlesborough last season being the standout example. He won us the match and didn't get a sniff for a few games after.

The only real critique of Martial that has any validity is that of his movement. It's comfortably his biggest weakness and it's why I don't think he's a striker. I don't think movement can be taught either. It's more of an innate quality that is generally reflected through just being 'there' at the right times. He can improve on it, however, in time.

Mourinho has a gem here and it's up to the pair of them to make it work. On the basis of this pre season I think we can be optimistic.

I agree with this 1000% we'll said

 

[shamans]

Martial is a very good player and I think he is going to be a star for us.

However sometimes Martial gives me the sort of vibe similar to that player you played with in school, who was very good and above most of the team in skill, but most of the time chooses to dribble and take on 3-4 players and then shoot instead of choosing better options sometimes.

This.

And another player that gave me that vibe was Nani. I think being a top player you have go to be consistently good. For a club of our ambitions being world class on certain days is not what you want from a player you consider to be the backbone of your team.

That said he is young and could go any direction. Could be another Nani or become a Hazard.

 

[shamans]

Some of you need to look at yourselves in the mirror and stop for a second of you haven't realised how ridiculously microanalysed Martial is getting on these boards.

People are hell bent in finding reason in everything the manager does so they convince themselves that all the problems lie with Martial.

Complaining about an attacking player losing possession while trying to make things happen is just another wierd example of how ridiculous this place has gotten.

Some missed passes which happen to anyone and I mean anyone which are often regarded as part of a game have now become a stick to whip Martial with.

The mentality has simply shifted with some public statements from the manager.

I noticed how people have stopped being critical of Rashford wasteful plays since he received a lot of praise from Mourinho. His quiet and average games are ignored while his good games are revelled while Martial get mauled for having quite games after coming into games 20 minutes from times and his good games are met with microanalysed opinion and backhand compliments.

People have found excuses for Lingard abysmal numbers to justify Mourinho preferring him.

Martial being the unlucky one, received public criticisms from his manager and the Caf completely turned on him.

He gets asked to do more or face the likelihood of being sold while the likes of Rashford l, Lingard, Miki aren't being asked to do more or face the axe by Caftards.

You now read how Martial is a break season or he's sold while the rest aren't given such hard time. All of this despite Martial in spite of being the least favored managed to contribute more than his fellow attackers.

People are using running, working hard and all those intangible as excuses to justify preferring(Mou) the likes of Lingard and Rashford over Martial.

People claim that Rashford did well last season, Lingard is rightly trusted by the manager and Martial was poor and another sloopy season he should be sold. Yet in reality Martial in the very season where he's called poor has put in better numbers than the others despite the latter getting more leaways.
Truly baffling.

It is not baffling because Martial is occupying the role of being our potential start player/talisman. Of course he will be held to different standards than lingard. Last season he simply wasn't good enough for that role. That's not to say he never will be. Anyone with an ounce of knowledge can see he has the potential but isn't guaranteed to fullfill it.

 

[Dobbs]

He's the new Kagawa in that his faults are passed off as being the fault of our system or other players with the glorious expectation that if he was just used correctly he'd be amazing.

His season will depend on how much he learns to utilise Lukaku. Lukaku should afford him space its whether he can learn to make the most of it or whether he continues to need ball to feet and tries to take on 4 men.

Its nothing like the Kagawa situation. Martial HAS done the business, our best player during his first season. We're not searching for some never seen before level of performance as we were with Kagawa.

 

[royboy16]

Martial goal and assists on tour

LA Galaxy 0:4 Manchester United (Assist for Mkhitaryan)


LA Galaxy 0:5 Manchester United (Goal)


Real Madrid 0:1 Manchester United (Assist for Lingard)


Manchester United 2:1 Sampdoria (Assist for Mata)


first three clips c/o GifLord, last clip c/o nGolos

That assist v Real will be hard to beat even by his own standards.

 

[Adisa]

just came across this. What a goal this would have been.

 

[Catt]

Some of you need to look at yourselves in the mirror and stop for a second of you haven't realised how ridiculously microanalysed Martial is getting on these boards.

People are hell bent in finding reason in everything the manager does so they convince themselves that all the problems lie with Martial.

Complaining about an attacking player losing possession while trying to make things happen is just another wierd example of how ridiculous this place has gotten.

Some missed passes which happen to anyone and I mean anyone which are often regarded as part of a game have now become a stick to whip Martial with.

The mentality has simply shifted with some public statements from the manager.

I noticed how people have stopped being critical of Rashford wasteful plays since he received a lot of praise from Mourinho. His quiet and average games are ignored while his good games are revelled while Martial get mauled for having quite games after coming into games 20 minutes from times and his good games are met with microanalysed opinion and backhand compliments.

People have found excuses for Lingard abysmal numbers to justify Mourinho preferring him.

Martial being the unlucky one, received public criticisms from his manager and the Caf completely turned on him.

He gets asked to do more or face the likelihood of being sold while the likes of Rashford l, Lingard, Miki aren't being asked to do more or face the axe by Caftards.

You now read how Martial is a break season or he's sold while the rest aren't given such hard time. All of this despite Martial in spite of being the least favored managed to contribute more than his fellow attackers.

People are using running, working hard and all those intangible as excuses to justify preferring(Mou) the likes of Lingard and Rashford over Martial.

People claim that Rashford did well last season, Lingard is rightly trusted by the manager and Martial was poor and another sloopy season he should be sold. Yet in reality Martial in the very season where he's called poor has put in better numbers than the others despite the latter getting more leaways.
Truly baffling.

So people have been brainwashed by big, bad Mourinho and can't see and think for themselves?

Martial is getting plenty of praise but I think people are frustrated because we see him having potential. Also, Lingard is basically this forums scapegoat together with Fellaini.

 

[Wade3]

So people have been brainwashed by big, bad Mourinho and can't see and think for themselves?

Martial is getting plenty of praise but I think people are frustrated because we see him having potential. Also, Lingard is basically this forums scapegoat together with Fellaini.

He has a point that Mourinho's opinion weighs heavily in the opinion of most fans. People need to relax, plain and simple.

 

[AlecHDR]

I hope he does well but if Mourinho is not sold on him fot whatever reason, I hope he loans him out to Monaco, Dortmund, or Atletico. He will get to develop a lot more there than he would sitting on our bench.

A lot of the criticism he gets here is unfair but it is what it is. People are either influenced by what Mourinho says or have very high expectations because of Martial's first season. That season made it easy to forget how young Martial is.

 

[AndyJ1985]

He has a point that Mourinho's opinion weighs heavily in the opinion of most fans. People need to relax, plain and simple.

Mourinho knows the players better than we ever will, so why the feck wouldn't we be influenced by what he says?

 

[Catt]

He has a point that Mourinho's opinion weighs heavily in the opinion of most fans. People need to relax, plain and simple.

True we need to chill a little bit. I do think Martial has been disappointing and expect him to do better this season.

 

[dal]

You can quote me on this

He will never make it here as a regular first teamer

He lacks motivation and he ain't no Ronaldinho.

He will be sold in 1-2 years most likely or will be a squad player.

 

[Red_toad]

Mourinho knows the players better than we ever will, so why the feck wouldn't we be influenced by what he says?

Sections of our fans are blaming Jose for Martials performances. They feel he should be giving him a hug rather than expecting him to perform a certain way for the team. The same people are obsessed with this agenda Jose is supposed to have against Martial, that they've created in their heads.

 

[Smores]

Its nothing like the Kagawa situation. Martial HAS done the business, our best player during his first season. We're not searching for some never seen before level of performance as we were with Kagawa.

Maybe Kagawa didn't do it here but he had previously albiet in another league. Recreating form from another league as opposed to another manager meh not much difference

I don't think Martial gets that much criticism at all its just we have a few nutjobs (as per Kagawa thread) who jump on any criticism.

 

[Litch]

I worry for him as I do for most of the forward players at Utd. First I'm completely confused about what is their best position (aside from Rom) and also they don't get enough game time playing in any one position regularly. The number of forward players is crazy at this club and we are talking about another wide player. I also 100% believe Ibra will be signed again in Jan 18 and Griezmann will be here next season.

Martial needs to play regular and get the confidence in doing so otherwise I can see him being sold or maybe part of the Griezmann deal.

 

[Kag]

You can quote me on this

He will never make it here as a regular first teamer

He lacks motivation and he ain't no Ronaldinho.

He will be sold in 1-2 years most likely or will be a squad player.

How do you know he lacks motivation? It's just an utterly baseless claim, influenced directly from this warped armchair psychologist mentality that litters these forums.

Which essentially refutes the following comment:

Maybe Kagawa didn't do it here but he had previously albiet in another league. Recreating form from another league as opposed to another manager meh not much difference

I don't think Martial gets that much criticism at all its just we have a few nutjobs (as per Kagawa thread) who jump on any criticism.

Martial gets more criticism than just about any player on these boards. Some of it fair (his movement and own responsibility for form last season), and some of it unfair (motivation, attitude and gross exaggeration of said form last season). It's usually fairly personal, too.

It's no exaggeration to suggest that he is extremely microanalysed. Just read through the thread and each and every dribble is discussed, focused upon and assessed in isolation, usually to further a vacuous narrative surrounding his attitude or inconsistency. All the while he is actively being productive in our first team during a positive pre season.

@Red_toad is valiantly attempting to pretend as there is some agenda posed against Mourinho. Like there is some fanboy mentality going on here. Well, it's not really the case. It's more than fair to say that Martial, beyond October, was never given a run of games last season. Appearance stats confirm this. Next somebody will tell me it's because he wasn't producing the goods. Again, that's not strictly true. There were games, such as Middlesborough, in which he was brilliant and yet nowhere to be seen in the following weeks. He even ended the season well, further refuting this incessant depiction of what many people are imagining to be some sort of hideous season. It really, really wasn't.

Both Mourinho and Martial have a responsibility to make this work. In reality, there is no excuse. Mourinho has a phenomenal talent at his disposal, as does Martial. Here's hoping this season sees some progress.

There's a fair debate to be had around Martial, but few people are interested in having one.

 

[Santoryo]

These arguments about how x manager does or says this means he's right is always hilarious.

I sat here on these boards seeing people vehemently defend every single decision Moyes made, same with Van Gaal and it's the same with Mourinho. It's always about how they're manager and know better and we shouldn't question anything and just go through with the motion.

What's even funnier is that Mourinho someone wildly known to fail to develop talented young players and shipping then only for them to flourish somewhere else to prove him wrong, is now being presented as this credible and unquestionable person who'd always know what's best for young players.

The same people pretending to be top red with parroting everything Mourinho says were most likely the ones well aware of Mourinho failures when it comes to managing young talented players and leading them to their potential.

Mou doesn't have any benefit of the doubt here, he is well known to fail to managed young talent and that's clearly what's been happening with Martial so far. If anything the benefit of the doubt should be given to Martial given he's proven his talent already while Mou is a proven failure toward guiding and managing talented(especially the extremely talented ones) young players.

There is no need to exert ridiculous mental gymnastic, underrate Martial and microanalyse everything he does in order to find sense in Mourinho decision. The guy is just up to his old habits which are him mismanaging a certain ilk of players.

When you have a manager givine more game times to the likes of Lingard or Rashford over a talent like Martial(Ballon d'or potential)with some pretence about hardwork etc then you know what's up.

This pre season alone Martial has already received harsher criticisms from this boards compared to his peers despite him putting in consistent performances with numbers (assists and goal) while Rashford is allowed to have cold games with no one caring. I mean beside 2 games this pre season Rashford has been nothing much but no one bother bombarding his thread with constant negativity, Heck I've seen nonsense stating that he's a consistent player compared to Martial