It was only just this past weekend that Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick was discussing the possibility of Anthony Martial having a future at the club. And he still may, although the chances of that are very very small.
According to multiple outlets, Martial is set to undergo a medical with Sevilla, ahead of a loan move that will see him with the La Liga outfit until the end of the season. The deal does not include an option to buy. Things are moving really fast, with an official announcement, in regards to the French forward, possibly coming later today.
Maybe Rangnick was only doing the proverbial “saying all the right things” when discussing Martial, or perhaps he was just talking him up in an effort to get better terms on the player’s loan deal set. However, the latter is unlikely, given how Martial is taking a pay cut in order to complete the move.
Anthony Martial is clearly looking for an escape route, from the club he joined on summer transfer window deadline day in 2015, when he moved over from Monaco for an initial £36m fee.
He’s only made one appearance under Rangnick, and just 22 on the season. Just two years after netting 23 goals over the course of the 2019/20 campaign, he’s scored just once this term.
His feud with Rangnick and his desire to leave the club has been very public, for weeks on end.
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When his loan deal expires, in the summer, United will have a tough decision to make about the Frenchman. His contract expires in 2024, although there is still a club option to extend an additional season. Another United attacking player, Jesse Lingard, could be on his way out too.
More on that at this link.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.