Arsene Wenger has addressed reports that he failed to sign promising Manchester United newcomer Anthony Martial, revealing why he didn’t make a bid for the 19-year-old Frenchman despite him having tracked his rising career over the course of several years.
According to the Daily Star, Wenger spoke out against criticisms of him failing to swoop up Martial sooner, who joined Man U on transfer deadline day for a hefty £36 million.
“He was more a winger in his whole career and he played the final part of the season last year as striker,” the manager said. “But Monaco’s statement was always that the two players that would not move were Martial and [Layvin] Kurzawa, so I thought they would maintain that. But in the end both of them moved.”
Though many are now criticising Wenger for having failed to sign Martial ahead of United, before the youngster’s debut Man U came under heavy fire from those who believed that he was a desperation signing from a club desperate for new attacking options. It was only after his confident debut, in which he scored against the Manchester club’s rivals Liverpool, that this perception began to change among followers of the Premier League, and now that Martial has scored four goals in five games many are pointing to him being one of the club’s greatest prospects for the future.
One of Martial’s biggest early supporters has been pundit and former Man U defender Gary Neville, who told Sky Sports that the striker had “transformed the front end of the team.”
“In the first three weeks he couldn’t have made any greater impact upon me in terms of how he’s settled in, the goals he’s scored, the threat he’s provided, the transformation of the team,” Neville continued, adding: “But also the fact that he can physically handle himself, push big men out of the way, hold the ball and turn in one movement – that’s the bit that has shocked me and surprised me. It’s early days and he’s still got a lot to do but I think it’s something he should be positive about and United should be positive about.”
