How Manchester United Can Get the Best out of Anthony Martial

Anthony Martial is already outperforming expectations at Manchester United, and in order to get the best out of him, Louis van Gaal might have to play him a lot more than he planned to.

Van Gaal, speaking at a supporters event on September 9, per James Robson of Manchester Evening News, said, "Yes, I spend a lot of money on Martial—but I [bought] him for my successor, Ryan Giggs." 

In his first two games for United, however, there have been signs Martial could be the player who makes Van Gaal's stuttering attack into a more dangerous proposition.

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He came for 25 minutes against Liverpool and made an impact considerably beyond what was expected of him.

Scoring a wonder goal against United's archrivals in front of the Stretford End on your debut is Roy of the Rovers stuff. However, it was against PSV Eindhoven that Martial staked a real claim to be more than just one for the future.

Against Liverpool, he struggled to get into the game before his goal. Against PSV, though, he was a key part of United's attack. Before Luke Shaw's injury, the attacking unit of Martial, Memphis Depay and Juan Mata looked to be working very effectively. With the Frenchman leading the line, PSV's defenders looked in for a long night.

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He made a couple of really smart decisions with the ball, and throughout the evening, there were moments that promised a developing understanding between him and Memphis in particular.

The tone of the game changed after Shaw's injury, and in spite of Memphis' superb goal, United's attack went pretty flat. In the period when United were on top, though, having a skilful, powerful and fast frontman gave United an option they simply have not had during Van Gaal's tenure.

Of course, at 19, Martial is going to go through peaks and troughs of form. His physical development will also have to be monitored, although he looks advanced for his years in that regard.

Thus far, it would appear the way to get the best out of Martial—and make the best use of the squad's resources—would be to play the Frenchman regularly.

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This leaves Van Gaal with a dilemma when Wayne Rooney returns to fitness. The received wisdom of this season is that Rooney is United's No. 9.

During pre-season, Rooney said, per Mark Ogden of the Telegraph, "The two seasons I have really [played] as a lone striker have been my two best goalscoring seasons. It is where the manager and myself see my best position."

So far this season, there has been very little evidence to demonstrate that is still the case. The hat-trick against Club Brugge came against an injury-ravaged team. His Premier League form before his injury was average at best. On international duty, he managed to score two penalties but was not able to get a goal in open play against even San Marino.

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Barring a spectacular return to form in front of goal for Rooney, it would seem logical for Van Gaal to experiment with playing his captain behind Martial. While Mata's creativity and deft passing might beat out Rooney at No. 10, the latter's physical presence and determination could help create space for Martial.

Indeed, Martial's speed—and speed of thought—could also help create space for Rooney in a manner Rooney has unable to do for his deeper-lying colleagues when playing at No. 9 so far this season.

With Memphis on the left, either Ashley Young or Mata on the right and Rooney or Ander Herrera behind him, the youngster can bring a great deal to United's attack, and he has the players around him to create chances.

Herrera recently spoke to MUTV about Martial (h/t the club's website):

"

I think he is a player who has some qualities that the rest haven’t got. So I think he can run into the spaces when the midfielders look forward.

We are always going to find him because he’s very quick, very mobile, so I think he is a very good player for us and is going to give us different options.

"

One for the future he may be, but on the evidence of his first couple of hours of football for United, he might just be one for the here and now too.