Martial takes centre stage in Man United’s stuttering season

Former United captain Gary Neville, now a television pundit, said he was astonished to find that the forward’s statistics — in terms of goals and assists related to time on the pitch over the equivalent of a full season — were as good as Chelsea’s Eden Hazard’s.

Neville’s criticism was that Martial needed to improve his movement off the ball, as he covered less ground than any outfield player on either side who played the full 90 minutes on Sunday.

Yet Martial made four of the nine key United passes that led to a goal or a direct scoring chance.

“The quality is there, and the confidence is there now,” says Matic. “He just needs to be more consistent.”