Martial expects Jose to go as he eyes new deal
ANTHONY MARTIAL could sign a new five-year contract at Manchester United worth £130,000 a week because he thinks Jose Mourinho’s days at Old Trafford are numbered.
Sportsmail revealed yesterday that players and staff at United believe Mourinho could be sacked shortly following a summer of turmoil behind the scenes and a poor start to the new season. Martial is among them and he is now considering United’s offer of a long-term contract. It represents a U-turn for the Frenchman, 22, after his agent Philippe Lamboley confirmed in June that Martial wanted to move. He is still open to a switch before tomorrow’s European deadline amid interest from Atletico Madrid and AC Milan but expects United will not sell him after they rejected Tottenham’s advances. Martial has 12 months left on his £90,000-a-week deal and United will trigger a year’s extension if he does not sign a new one. Tying Martial to a new deal would be a victory for vice-chairman Ed Woodward, who has been at odds with Mourinho over transfers. He believes Martial has not yet fulfilled his potential. Mourinho wants to sell him to raise funds.
THE last time Manchester United suffered defeat in two of their opening three matches, Sir Alex Ferguson was yet to lift the league title and Ryan Giggs was just a fresh-faced teenager. The Wales manager was a 19-year-old who had just been crowned PFA Young Player of the Year before Sheffield United and Everton gave Ferguson’s side a rude awakening at the start of the 1992-93 season. This time around it is Jose Mourinho who is under intense pressure after a 3-0 humbling at home to Tottenham following a shock loss away to Brighton.
But when asked whether he would be a smart bet to replace Mourinho at odds of 12-1, Giggs (right) had the perfect response. ‘No, I would keep your money in your pocket if I were you,’ he said. ‘If you go back to 1992 we had just lost out to Leeds in the old Football League, then we got beaten by Sheffield United and Everton, and drew against Ipswich. ‘You can imagine that now with social media. It would be like it is now but as a player in the dressing room, what can you do? You just have to do your best in training and, if you’re picked, do your best on the pitch.’ United went on to win their next five matches to lay the foundations for a title-winning season. The current crop of Premier League stars have the chance to turn things around when they face Burnley on Sunday. Giggs’ message to United is to go out at Turf Moor to silence their critics. ‘The spotlight is so much more, it is about that game against Burnley, winning that and then you get a bit of a respite after the internationals,’ said Giggs, who leads Wales into competitive action for the first time next week in the Nations League against the Republic of Ireland and Denmark. ‘That is what I’d be looking forward to, Sunday and shutting a few people up. It is a huge club and when it will be silencing critics I don’t know. It might not be Sunday, I hope it is. But they will come through. It is a difficult time but they have been through tough times before.’