UNITED IN £36m BID FOR A KID
Shock move for Martial, 19, as Gomis stuns LVG
MANCHESTER UNITED have opened talks with Monaco over a £36million deal for teenage striker Anthony Martial, who has been compared in style to Thierry Henry.
The 19-year-old played for Monaco in their 3-0 defeat by Paris Saint-Germain last night. Monaco’s special adviser, Luis Campos, last night said the teenager was not for sale but talks are expected to continue today. Martial was the subject of a failed £19million offer from Tottenham this summer and has also been watched by Chelsea. The move comes as Javier Hernandez joins Bayer Leverkusen on a three-year deal.
United suffered their first Barclays Premier League defeat of the season as Swansea came from a goal down at the Liberty Stadium. The display prompted Gary Neville to launch into a scathing
assessment of the United squad. Neville said Louis van Gaal needs to solve the goalkeeping crisis and sign a defender and striker before tomorrow’s transfer deadline.
Sergio Romero was again selected ahead of David de Gea in goal but while his error helped Bafetimbi Gomis score Swansea’s winner, United legend and Sky Sports pundit Neville extended the blame by slamming the team’s lack of attacking intent and competency.
Neville said: ‘They have not got enough cutting edge. They have not got players who can beat players in the final third, they don’t create enough. They dominate possession but they don’t dominate matches. You dominate a match by scoring goals and playing at a high tempo.’
Neville added: ‘United need to sign a new striker, keep De Gea and now that Jonny Evans has gone, ideally a centre back too, in the next few days.’
Having allowed Robin van Persie to join Fenerbahce and refused to make Radamel Falcao’s loan deal permanent, many expected United to bring in a new forward but they have yet to do so.
Martial, who hit 12 goals for Monaco last season, is one of the most talented young forwards in Europe, possessing the pace to get in behind defences which United are missing right now.
He impressed in Monaco’s Champions League defeat by Valencia but would not be cup-tied should he decide to move to Old Trafford. Hernandez bid goodbye to his fellow United players as they left a flight in Manchester last night, with Van Gaal thanking him for his services. His £12m move to Bayer Leverkusen has forced West Ham to turn their attention to Chelsea striker Victor Moses and Hull’s Nikica Jelavic. A deal for Tottenham striker Emmanuel Adebayor looks unlikely to happen.