Solskjaer urges goal shy Martial to ‘kick on’ and regain his best form | OneFootball

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has urged forward Anthony Martial to get back to his best following a below-par start to the season for the Frenchman and Manchester United.

The 24-year-old enjoyed an impressive 2019/20 campaign, netting 23 goals in all competitions having been restored to his more suited central striking role.

Those goals helped fire United to a third place finish last term, yet it’s been a tale of woe this season for the French international, with him still to register a Premier League goal.

That fact has not been aided by the forward’s three-match suspension, which came as a result of a red card picked up in the 6-1 home defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on 3 October.

The former Monaco man does have two goals in the Champions League, however, scoring in the 5-0 win over RB Leipzig and the embarrassing 2-1 defeat to Istanbul Basaksehir, while he also netted an unfortunate own goal in the 2-1 victory over Paris Saint-Germain.

With summer signing Edinson Cavani patiently waiting for his chance, Martial will be looking to impress on Tuesday night against Basaksehir, with boss Solskjaer urging his number nine to recapture his best form and build upon last term.

“You’re right he did well last season, he took big strides,” Solskjaer told his pre-match press conference.

“Then again, he has not had a pre-season as normal. He lost three games with suspension, so he has lost too much football. He scored against Basaksehir last time.”

“I think Anthony will take even bigger strides and develop more. He scored 23, 24 last season, a big return. There are demands in any position, so we want Anthony to kick on.

“For me it is him getting the chances, he has always been good, maybe the keepers have made some good saves against him.”

The Norwegian was also asked about the importance of Tuesday night’s clash at Old Trafford, with United currently having picked up six points from a possible nine in Group H.

“It is always a great question,” Solskjaer added.

“The answer is very (important to win). We need at least 10 points to go through, might even need  points, so we are going to go in trying to win it and win it well.”

Read: Solskjaer urges Manchester United to ‘play simple’

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