Man United forward Anthony Martial looked far from impressed when his number was called on 58 minutes against Bournemouth this Saturday.
The France international shook his head in apparent disbelief before walking straight down the tunnel to the dressing room as Wout Weghorst came on to replace him on the hour mark at the Vitality Stadium.
It’s not clear whether Martial was carrying an injury or if Erik ten Hag made the decision for tactical reasons. But either way, Martial will be disappointed he was unable to make the most of his opportunity this weekend in place of the out-of-action Marcus Rashford.
Martial has had a stop-start campaign, thwarted by injuries, but looked to be turning a corner in recent weeks, representing the Red Devils three times this month.
He scored in United’s 2-0 win over Wolves last time out but was replaced by Weghorst on the 69th minute
Martial was named in the starting XI for the trip to Bournemouth this Saturday afternoon, leading the line with Antony and Jadon Sancho on either side of him.
But on the 58-minute mark, Ten Hag once again decided that he’d seen enough and replaced the forward for his trusty target man. Ten Hag praised the impact his substitutions had on the Wolves game, following the victory.
“All of the subs had a good impact,” Ten Hag said. “And I think it is one of the problems in the last week that the subs were bad. Didn’t have an impact. But today, all of the subs came on and [straightaway] had an impact on the game.”
It seems that this influenced his decision to hook Martial once again this weekend, but it’s unlikely to have gone down too well with the Frenchman.
Martial is contracted at United until 2024 with the option of another year but he may look to leave this summer for regular first-team football.
The forward has been at Old Trafford since 2015 but has never been a mainstay in the first team at any point.
There is much competition for a spot in United’s front line this season, with Rashford and Antony commanding roles in Ten Hag’s new-look side.
Alejandro Garnacho has also been knocking on the doors in recent months.