In the first leg of the 2021-22 Europa League knockout play-off, Sevilla played at home against Dinamo Zagreb. In the end, with goals from Rakitic, Ocampos and Martial, he won 3-1. Sevilla's home win was not a surprise, but Martial's goal was enough to be a post-match hotspot.
This was his first goal since joining Sevilla on loan and the second goal he has been directly involved in in three games since leaving Manchester United. He has played just one goal in 11 games for United this season. Such a huge change is enough to become the focus of heated discussion in the outside world, the classic "gathering is a lump of X, scattering is full of stars." "Once again it became a mantra for the fans.
Martial has been scolded at Manchester United for many years, either complaining about his limited progress or accusing the game of a poor attitude. But is it a team problem or a personal problem for Anthony Martial to deliver such a brilliant performance as soon as he left Manchester United? Or both? Let's explore it together.
In terms of the team, Since Joining Manchester United in 2015, Martial has mainly performed for two periods. The first segment was Martial's first season with Manchester United, when the head coach was Louis van Gaal. The Dutch boss saw the potential of the 19-year-old Martial and persuaded the top brass to spend 60 million yuan to sign him. Moreover, in order to express his appreciation and respect for him, Martial was awarded the "No. 9 shirt" symbolizing the main center. The following season, Martial delivered 45 starts in 49 games, 17 goals and 8 assists.
But Van Gaal was fired, and after Mourinho took office, Martial's status plummeted. His No. 9 was stripped away, his position was pulled from his favorite No. 9 to the wing, and his performance plummeted in the following seasons.
After Solskjaer took office, he approached Martial, asked if he wanted to wear back to the no. 9, and sent Lukaku away to straighten him out. The following season, Martial broke out again. With 41 starts in 48 games and 23 goals and nine assists, this is his first goal since coming to the Theater of Dreams. After Ronnick took office, he was completely lost and for the first time revealed the idea of leaving the team.
From this experience, we can see that Martial's performance at Manchester United is always a period of time. Under the manager who is particularly important to him, Martial's performance will be obviously bright, and once he is not valued by the manager, the whole person is like a lifeless. This may be what Sevilla player Haldane said in an interview recently, and Martial needs to feel respected and valued. We can see that after Martial joined Sevilla, director Monchi personally went to the airport to pick up and invited Martial's idol Ronaldo to record a welcome video.
"We think we have the ability to get him to play his full strength, which may mean that we need to give him more love, support and trust." We have to communicate with him more and make him feel that he is important, that everyone is different, that everyone has their own needs. ”
From Munch's words, we can know that he has found the "key" to activate Martial. It's about making players feel loved and respected! Because every player is a different individual with his own needs, and what Martial needs is this kind of psychological comfort. We can clearly see that Martial has been much more positive after joining Sevilla, which is a kind of performance of gratitude.
In short, Martial's potential is certainly there, and it is not low, otherwise van Gaal's eyesight would not have been able to take a fancy to him, and paid such a high transfer fee. In addition, in his first season after joining Manchester United, he was able to deliver close to 20 goals and close to 10 assists, which is not something that the average 19-year-old can do in a league like the Premier League.
If he can grow up healthily under a manager who values him, the ceiling will certainly not be low. Unfortunately, he joined Manchester United in a turbulent period, and the manager changes frequently, which is very detrimental to the development of young people.