'We're not being harsh enough!' - Neville ANNIHILATES Man Utd flop

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 2 Nov 2023 07:33 GMT
• 3 min read

Gary Neville did not hold back when criticising Manchester United attacker Anthony Martial following the Red Devils’ 3-0 EFL Cup loss to Newcastle at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

The nature of the defeat has heightened pressure over manager Erik ten Hag, whose future has been discussed by transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, but it was also an encounter that surely seals the end of the 27-year-old Martial at Old Trafford.

Out of contract next summer, the France international, who was signed from Monaco in 2015 for €60 million, failed to make an impact, leaving Neville critical of his performance since joining the club.

MORE: Romano reveals what Ten Hag said to Man Utd stars after Newcastle loss

Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “Sometimes I ask myself the question, when you walk away from a broadcast like Sunday thinking ‘are we being too harsh?

“But when you hear that stat that a guy has been at the club nine years - a goalscorer that cost £50m, £60m, £70m - has scored basically 89 goals in nine years and we still can't get him out the club, I don't think we are being too harsh. I don't think we're being harsh enough!

“The failings of the football department and recruitment is just absolutely incredible. They're human beings at the end of the day and no one wants to go on the pitch, play badly and not achieve their standards. Nobody wants to be injured.

“So I accept all those factors but the reality is there is no way he should still be leading the line at Man United in any competition, even the Carabao Cup. It's just where the club is at the moment, they don't have a centre forward apart from Rasmus Hojlund who I think has real promise but he needs experience alongside him.”

Despite Martial’s struggles at Old Trafford, he has enjoyed some highs at Old Trafford. Shortly after he arrived at the club, he scored a remarkable goal against Liverpool, while he has hit double figures of Premier League goals on three occasions, notably grabbing 17 in 32 games in the 2019/20 campaign.