MARTIAL HAS SAME QUALITY AS HENRY

Former Manchester United striker Louis

Saha has praised Anthony Martial’s

impressive form this season and

believes the 20-year-old has as much

quality as Thierry Henry did at that age.

Martial joined the Reds in August and it was

felt at the time that he would be a prospect

for the long-term future. However, the former

Monaco man immediately proved his class by

scoring a sensational debut goal against

Liverpool and he currently has 12 goals from

39 appearances.

United’s no.9 has long been compared to

Henry and Saha is well placed to comment on

that link, given that he played with the

Arsenal legend when earning his 20

international caps with France. Louis was

quick to agree while speaking to MUTV at the

recent #ILOVEUNITED event in Bahrain.

"He has definitely got the quality and the

platform for working really hard at

Manchester United," Saha said. "When you

get that, you get the experience under your

belt of being at a big club and you get

respected easier with France. When you see

him, he has as much quality as Thierry Henry

at this age.

"Thierry was a really decisive player and that

is where Martial needs to work; he needs to

be more precise and give more indication to

his game.

"Everything seems to be easy for him: being

on the ball, being strong, holding the ball at

the right moments, getting important goals

and being able to play week in and week out.

He hasn’t played this many games during his

career so he has done really well to adapt his

physique.

"What I really like about him is that he is

willing to improve. He is listening and trying

to get things going. He hasn’t been helped

because the team hasn’t been performing

consistently, so imagine if a few players

stepped it up? Then it would have been even

easier for him."

Competition for places up front is something

else that will improve Martial in the long term,

according to Saha, who jostled with some big-

name strikers in his five-season career at

United.

"Sometimes when you are a quality player

you have to challenge yourself," Louis told us.

"It may be good to have more strikers who

will really challenge him and make sure he

steps it up again and again.

"That is something that I had with Ruud van

Nistelrooy, Carlos Tevez, Alan Smith, Wayne

Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo. When you play

around them you have to really perform every

weekend, so that is something that United

need to find as quickly as possible."

Martial is currently with the France national

team during the international break and

MUTV subscribers will be able to watch him

live on Friday night when Les Bleus face

Netherlands in Amsterdam. Saha will be

tuning in to the official club channel and feels

his compatriots will do well.

"I am confident," he said. "The motivation of

the boys - it is something that you look at.

They have had average results lately and

Didier Deschamps will ask his players to step

up because he is now making his selection for

Euro 2016. They will definitely be motivated

and will show it on the night."