Under-fire Martial opens up on Cavani competition

Anthony Martial accepts Edinson Cavani will keep him on his toes at Manchester United, but sees the striker’s arrival as more of a positive than negative.

Martial recorded a career-best of 23 goals and 12 assists in 48 appearances for Manchester United last season in all competitions.

The Frenchman was particularly impressive post-lockdown, managing six goals and four assists in his last nine Premier League outings to help the Red Devils finish third in the Premier League standings.

His form this season, however, has been a far cry from his previous one.

Martial has failed to find the back of the net in any of his four appearances in all competitions this season. A red card against Tottenham and an own goal at Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month compounded his misery.

Moreover, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has now added a proven goalscoring talent in Cavani to his ranks. The Uruguayan made his debut over the weekend and hopes to make his first start in United’s Champions League game against RB Leipzig on Wednesday.

“He’s a really great player, he’s proved exactly that all the way through his career, and I hope that he’ll manage to help us out,” Martial told the United Review.

“It’s always a positive to have even more quality within the group and as there are always a lot of fixtures to play, when one player is rested, it will allow us to ensure that there is no drop-off in quality whatsoever.

“That’s especially important for the team.”

As for his recent problems, Martial added: “That red card [against Spurs] was my first ever and it’s something that I will learn from. But it will at least allow me to work even harder in training to come back even better.

“I still haven’t scored yet this season. But I know that as and when I get off the mark with one, everything will be fine.

“So, it’s down to me to keep putting in a big effort in training and to then show everybody the real Anthony Martial.”