Former Crystal Palace owner Simon Jordan has called Anthony Martial an "entitled nitwit" following his comments about former Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho.
In an explosive interview with France Football, Martial, 26, criticised Mourinho for handing his No.9 shirt to Zlatan Ibrahimovic in July 2016. The Frenchman did eventually get his preferred jersey back three years later after being forced to wear the No.11.
Martial also slammed Mourinho for "talking about me in the press" - accusing him of playing games - and for signing Alexis Sanchez in January 2018. He believes Sanchez's arrival led to him being left out of France's World Cup squad in 2018, a tournament they won.
Yet Jordan is not impressed with Martial's comments. Speaking to talkSPORT, he said: "So basically - you arrogant, entitled little nitwit - your manager offered you an opportunity to see his way of thinking, you perceived that as being treachery.
"And you then move it along and you take a swipe at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer... This sort of outlook and disposition, does it not stagger you a little bit and steer into the narrative that people have such a low opinion of footballers sometimes, the lack of self awareness?"
Martial joined United from Monaco in August 2015, shortly before being named as the Golden Boy - an award given to the best young footballer in Europe. Since then, he's shown glimpses of his ability but has failed to perform consistently in the Premier League.
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Martial has scored 79 goals in 270 appearances for United - winning the FA Cup, EFL Cup, Europa League and Community Shield - but just eight of those goals have come since September 2020. He spent the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla, scoring once.
Much was expected of Martial this term after a solid pre-season campaign, but he's played just once due to an Achilles injury. The 30-cap international will compete with Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford for a starting role when he makes his comeback.
Jordan added: "He stunk the place out at Sevilla last year, so this is not him, the dynamic is not him, it’s everybody else. It’s everybody’s fault, but him.
"So it wasn’t his fault, it was Mourinho’s fault. It wasn’t his fault, it was Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s fault. I’m assuming that it was too hot in Sevilla, so it wasn’t his fault either. At what point does someone say to this fella, 'shut up'?"
On his relationship with Mourinho, Martial said: "The story did not start well [with the shirt saga] He disrespected me, straight up... He was talking about me in the press. He likes these games, but he also knows who he is doing it with.
"He knows that I am 20 years old then and that if I say something, it is I who will be the young person who lacks respect. The second season [at United], I was the team's top scorer in the first part of the season, he brought in Alexis Sanchez and I hardly played anymore. It cost me dearly. I should have been there [the 2018 World Cup]."
