Club boss shuts down links to ex-Man Utd star who is STILL a free agent

Tom Weber

Updated: 2 Sept 2024 17:51 BST
3 min read

Anthony Martial, Man Utd, 2023/24 — © IMAGO

Anthony Martial remains a free agent - and he won't be moving to Ligue 1 side Lille.

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The Frenchman was released by Manchester United at the beginning of the summer after nine largely unsuccessful years at Old Trafford. Signed for an eye-watering €60 million in 2015, Martial only rarely showed glimpses of why he commanded such an exorbitant fee.

The forward departed upon the expiration of his contract after a season largely spent on the sidelines due to injury. Transfer speculation surrounding the 28-year-old has, however, been few and far between.

Occasional links to Ligue 1 clubs such as Marseille and his former side Monaco have cropped up, but nothing concrete has as yet materialised. Most recently, the attacker was associated with a switch to Lille, but this transfer won't be happening anytime soon either.

Lille president shuts down Martial links

Speaking to the media after his side lost 3-1 to PSG, Lille president Olivier Letang rubbished claims that he was talking to Martial about a potential transfer.

Asked whether contacts had taken place, Letang said emphatically: "No. Absolutely none. I’m not in the habit of stockpiling players. We have Jonathan David, Mohamed Bayo and Matias Fernandez-Pardo. That’s already three solutions for one position.”

Letang, of course, will only be too familiar to Man Utd fans, having brokered the sale of Leny Yoro to the Red Devils during the summer transfer window.

The president publically stated that the wonderkid defender was for sale and reportedly pressured the teenager into accepting Man Utd's offer as Lille were determined to sell the out-of-contract star.

However, while Yoro went from Lille to Manchester, it seems unlikely that Martial will head in the other direction if Letang's words are to be believed. It will be interesting to see where the free-agent striker ends up.