Anthony Martial has hailed the impact of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United, both for the team’s previously flagging campaign and on his own game in particular.
When Solskjaer replaced Jose Mourinho in December, United were 11 points off the top four, but in eight Premier League games under the Norwegian the gap has been closed to two, and the Red Devils could finish the coming weekend in the Champions League places depending on their game against Fulham and other results.
Despite the team’s poor start to the season – when Mourinho was sacked, United had made their worst start to a season in 28 years – Martial believes they are now well poised for the rest of the season.
“I don’t think we are very far off the top four now so it is just a case of keeping going, winning as many games as we can so we can ensure a place in those Champions League spots at the end of the season,” the Frenchman told Sky Sports.
Solskjaer has made an unbeaten start to his time as caretaker manager, with nine wins and a draw in 10 games across competitions, and Martial has praised the United legend for bringing the best out of him and his team-mates.
“He [Solskjaer] is a coach with great values. I think he knows how to get the best out of players and he makes things clear so when we go out onto the field, we all know our jobs and we all know what we’ve got to do,” he added.
“He’s given me lots of advice. It’s always positive to get advice from a top player in his own right, but sometimes, when you’re out on the field, it comes down to what comes naturally to you and you do what you’ve always known how to do in terms of finishing.”
Martial has always been known for his cool, composed finishing, but he revealed that his success rate in training is actually a poorer finisher than what his on-field performances would indicate, a source of laughter among his United team-mates.
He said: “We have a laugh among ourselves quite often because I think finishing is something that comes naturally to me. I’ve played since I was a young kid, I’ve always been a footballer and a striker from that early age.
“The thing we laugh about is that I miss quite a few in training, whereas in a match, I may only get one chance and I manage to convert it.”
