Why Martial is closer than ever to Man Utd exit

Robin Bairner
Robin Bairner
  • 24 Jan 2022 20:26 GMT
  • 3 min read
Anthony Martial
© ProShots

Anthony Martial’s departure on loan from Manchester United appears to be on the verge of being completed, with the France attacker set to leave for Spanish side Sevilla.

The 26-year-old Martial has fallen out of the picture at Man Utd in recent months, in part due to the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo but also because of his own mediocre form when selected.

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Having scored only one goals this season from 11 appearances, he has long been linked with a switch away from Old Trafford.

Sevilla, meanwhile, are reportedly on the brink of pushing a deal through, with the player himself highly influential in terms of getting it over the line.

One of the major problems over a move was expected to be the player’s wages. He earns a reported £250,000 a week, which is out of the Spanish club’s ballpark.

However, Goal now reports that Martial is willing to accept a pay cut if it means that a deal can be completed.

Still work to be done

Anthony Martial has been put up for sale by Man Utd
© ProShots

It is noted, however, that there are still some major obstacles that have to be cleared if a transfer for the former Monaco man is to be completed.

Foremost among these problems is that Man Utd reportedly want a loan fee of £5m (€6m) for the forward – effectively doubling the cost of the player on top of his wages.

Martial’s position at Old Trafford appears to be as fragile as ever, with interim manager Ralf Rangnick revealing earlier this month that the striker refused to travel to Aston Villa for a Premier League clash. That has since been put down to a misunderstanding, but it is clear that all is not well between the two parties.

It would seem to suit Martial, Sevilla and Man Utd to get a deal done before January, so with talks having come this far, it would be surprising if they were to break down, although the Spanish side are notoriously tough negotiators.

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