Atleti interested in Martial swap - but who could Man Utd take?
Martin Macdonald
- 15 Dec 2021 12:55 GMT
- 4 min read
Atletico Madrid are interested in signing Manchester United forward Anthony Martial and could attempt to sign the Frenchman in the upcoming January transfer window.
Martial has struggled for game time at Old Trafford and, despite Man Utd hiring a new manager in Ralf Rangnick, the player’s agent, Philippe Lamboley, told Sky Sports that Martial has already made up his mind over his future.
“Anthony wishes to leave the club in January,” said Lamboley. “He just needs to play. He doesn’t want to stay in January and I will speak to the club soon.”
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Following that statement, speculation mounted as to where Martial might end up, and it appears he has a suitor already in the form of Atletico.
Diego Simeone already has Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann, Matheus Cunha, Joao Felix and Angel Correa within his attacking ranks in the Spanish capital but is allegedly a fan of Martial and could attempt to sign him at a discounted price.
Eurosport reports that Atletico will try and bring Martial's price down further by asking Man Utd if they would like any players in return in part-exchange.
So, here are a few options for the Red Devils.
Jose Gimenez
A few years ago it seems inevitable that Jose Gimenez would go on to become one of the best centre-backs in the world, and although he remains an excellent player, he hasn't really broken through into the higher echelon of the elite in world football.
He remains a key player at Atletico and it seems more than likely that Man Utd would actually have to pay money and give up Martial rather than the other way around, but they need another centre-back as Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly aren't up to it and Harry Maguire has had the worst season of his career to date.
Kieran Tripper
Man Utd have long been a fan of Kieran Trippier and reportedly attempted to sign the England international in the summer of 2021 following a positive performance at the European Championship with the Three Lions.
They were priced out of a move at the time as Atletico were keen to keep hold of their man, but Trippier wants to return to England and so this may present the perfect scenario for a swap deal with Martial going the other way.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been in dreadful form this campaign and has now been usurped to the right-back spot by Diogo Dalot as new Man Utd boss Ralf Rangnick appears to prefer the Portuguese.
Dalot might not be a long-term solution, though, so the time is now to pounce for Trippier.
Yannick Carrasco
If Man Utd want a replacement, of sorts, for Martial then they should look to further than Yannick Carrasco.
Under Rangnick so far, the club has played a 4-4-2 formation and that would suit Carrasco down to the ground as he has experience playing in the left of a four, the left of a three up top and even at left-back.
A hard worker, Carrasco would provide more stability on that flank ahead of Luke Shaw or Alex Telles, as well as giving plenty of creativity in the final third.
