It is impossible not to feel somewhat sorry for Anthony Martial.
The Manchester United forward has spent most of this season staring at the walls of the Carrington treatment room, as opposed to strutting his stuff out on the pitch. Injury troubles have so far restricted him to just 45 minutes worth of action this term, leaving him lagging behind his competitors in pursuit of a regular starting berth.
But on the one occasion Martial did get to try and start rekindling his United career, he ensured that he made his mark, providing an excellent assist for Marcus Rashford's first goal of the season in the 2-1 win over Liverpool last month. United were 1-0 up at half-time that evening and manager Erik ten Hag, instead of trying to protect what his team had got, sensed blood, making an unexpected attack-minded change.
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Within eight minutes of his introduction, Martial had justified his manager's thinking, providing the pass for Rashford to double United's lead. As well as providing the assist for what turned out to be the match-winner, his overall performance in the second half was one that ought to have left Ten Hag with a selection dilemma for the trip to Southampton five days later.
Unfortunately for Martial, his injury curse struck him again, sending him back to the treatment table. He has not played since, meaning he has missed the last five matches in all competitions - and it would have been more had the recent scheduled meetings with Crystal Palace and Leeds United not been postponed.
This time, it is an Achilles problem that he is battling against and it is currently unknown how long it will be before he is back available. Ten Hag is likely to be asked about his recovery when he addresses the media next week in the build-up to the Manchester derby against City.
If the Dutchman is able to deliver good news, hinting towards a return in the near future, Martial will add another string to United's bow, even if it promises to create a selection headache for Ten Hag. Despite spending the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla, scoring just one goal in 12 appearances, the 26-year-old returned to Old Trafford with the slate wiped clean. A new manager at the helm meant a fresh start.
And that was clear throughout pre-season. United, with Cristiano Ronaldo absent, used the tour of Thailand and Australia to trial their preferred front-three, teaming Martial up with Jadon Sancho and Rashford. The France international made the most of his opportunity to try and audition for a starting berth come the opening weekend in August, scoring three goals in four games on the tour, only firing a blank in the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa.
It was, therefore, somewhat unfortunate that he picked up a minor hamstring problem in the days leading up to the season opener against Brighton. United had found a front-three that complemented each other during pre-season and Martial's injury put pay to that being unleashed for Ten Hag's competitive debut in the United dugout.
Ten Hag has since tinkered with his front-three, experimenting with a few variations, but Antony, Rashford and Sancho look favourites to be considered the first-choice options, highlighted by the fact they started together in the 3-1 win over Arsenal. It meant Ronaldo was restricted to starting on the bench again, with Ten Hag favouring a quick, fluid front-three with Rashford at the head of it.
Considering Martial is of a similar mould, in the sense that he is quick, fluid and has the ability to press an opposition defence, he is more likely to challenge Rashford for a starting berth than Ronaldo is. Ten Hag, as highlighted in pre-season and against Liverpool, is clearly a fan of Martial, trusts him and believes he can play a part in what he is trying to achieve.
Ronaldo, on the flip side, has only started once in the Premier League so far this season, with Ten Hag preferring Rashford as his centre-forward in the last four matches. The Portuguese star only got his chance against Sheriff Tiraspol last week because Rashford was injured.
Once Martial is back to full fitness, Ronaldo's challenge of nailing down a starting berth could become an even trickier task. Ten Hag has shown he trusts Martial and he will be determined to repay him by making up for lost time.
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