The inevitable sense of scepticism around the Manchester United fanbase concerning the dependability of Anthony Martial is not shared by Erik ten Hag.
Marcus Rashford has scored 28 goals in 47 games this season and his worrying trudge down the tunnel after assisting Martial in Saturday's victory over Everton has wider implications for not only the rest of United's season but also the long term future of his French teammate.
United's talisman is out for at least a "few weeks" and the returning but injury-prone Martial has not played more than three games in a month once this season.
Ten Hag, however, was unequivocal about the impact Martial can have in the absence of his most reliable goalscorer. "When he's in the team, we play our best football," the Dutchman asserted in Wednesday's press conference.
"He is ready to start a game – against Everton he was ready to start. The stats are telling you that the moment he is on the pitch the time he needs for a goal is really less."
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Of course, Martial's goalscoring threat is far more potent than Ten Hag's other option to lead the line, the hard-working but profligate Wout Weghorst. Martial averages a goal every 117 minutes this season while Weghorst has two goals in 20 games since his loan move in January.
When actually available, Martial can operate as a mobile number nine in a dynamic attacking trio with wingers Antony and Jason Sancho. That option is crucial for Ten Hag with United looking at their most dangerous with the threat of pace on the counter attack.
Martial must prove his worth in Rashford's absence (Getty Images)The problem for the manager is that Martial has totalled just 798 minutes all season and his seven goals have come from 17 appearances. Rashford is expected to miss several games and Martial has not completed a full 90 minutes all season.
For the 27-year-old to prove he still has a future as an asset to Ten Hag at Old Trafford, surely that statistic has to change n the run-in with United still fighting for two trophies and a top four finish.
Martial's career at United is likely to be remembered as much for the wasted time he spent off the pitch injured as the important goals he has scored. But whether or not he is finally sold this summer, he has inadvertently been briefly offered the chance to become the club's first-choice frontman once more.
The Frenchman endured a miserable loan spell in Seville last season (NurPhoto via Getty Images)And his first start in three months could come tonight against Sevilla, the team he underperformed for last season after falling out of favour with former boss Ralf Rangnick. That one Spanish media outlet described Martial's performances as a "fiasco" tells you all you need to know about his stay in Seville.
He scored just one goal in 12 appearances in a short loan spell that unravelled quickly, but he now has the chance to edge United closer to Europa League glory in the quarter-final first leg against the tournament specialists.
Martial's return is timely given Rashford's setback and a telling impact in the next few fixtures might not only define his own United future but also the outcome of Ten Hag's first season at Old Trafford.
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