Martial explains how Mourinho’s public criticism made him feel

Joe Williams
Jose Mourinho Anthony Martial Manchester United

Anthony Martial says he wanted to prove Jose Mourinho wrong after the former Manchester United chose to publicly criticise the striker.

Reports at the time indicated that Mourinho – who recently took charge of Premier League side Tottenham – was keen to sell Martial if United received a suitable offer but executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward wasn’t keen on getting rid of the 24-year-old.

The Portuguese coach chose to publicly call out Martial over some of his poor performances and that didn’t go down too well with the Frenchman.

OPINION: Woodward must deliver Man Utd’s most crucial post-Fergie signing

Martial told RMC Sport: “It’s true that I’d have preferred it if he’d told me directly, there’s no need to say it in front of everybody.

“After that, you definitely want to prove him wrong. He didn’t start me during the first few games and each time I came on, I scored.

“In the end, he told me: ‘You see, now you understand what I wanted’. It can get to you. You just want to show him you deserve to be on the pitch.”