“He lacked respect for me” – Anthony Martial slams former Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho for harsh treatment
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Manchester United’s Anthony Martial has vented about how Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer treated him while they were in charge of the Old Trafford club. The Frenchman arrived in Manchester in 2015 to much excitement, but has battled to secure a spot in the starting XI under various managers, and spent the last season on loan with Sevilla.
Famously, Mourinho said in 2018 that Martial lacked “maturity,” and the Frenchman lost his No. 9 shirt when Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined the team under the Portuguese. Martial also maintains that Mourinho lacked respect in their interaction and that the former Tottenham manager intentionally hampered his prospects of representing France at the 2018 World Cup.
“It started with the story of the shirt number,” the forward told France Football. “During the holidays, he [Mourinho] sent me a message to ask if I want to change to the No.11, explaining to me that it is great because it was worn by Ryan Giggs, a club legend.“
“I tell him that I have the greatest respect for Giggs but I prefer to keep the No.9. When I returned to the club, I see my name with the No.11, the story did not end well. He [Mourinho] lacked direct respect for me.“
Anthony Martial believes Jose Mourinho’s treatment cost him place in France’s World Cup-winning squad
“He talked about me in the press, little phrases, a bit like he had done with Karim Benzema at Real Madrid. He likes these little games, but he also knows who he is doing it with. He knows that I am then 20 years old, that if I say something, it is I who will pass for the young person who lacks respect.”
“So I said nothing, it was useless. The following season, I was the best in the team in the first part of the season, he brought in Alexis Sanchez and there I hardly played anymore. It’s the season of the World Cup and it cost me dearly, especially since the France team won [the tournament]. I should have been there.”
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Sujeeth Shetty
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