Erik ten Hag and Joel Glazer are about to collide over Manchester United’s transfer strategy.
At Manchester United, Erik ten Hag is eager to offload Antony Martial, but Joel Glazer has already stated his opposition to any transfer.
Erik ten Hag has had enough of Anthony Martial at Manchester United and fears clashing with Joel Glazer over his transfer ambitions.
The club’s Glazer family owners earlier opposed Jose Mourinho’s attempts to trade the forward in order to lure then-Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic to Old Trafford.
Despite the obvious benefits to Man United at the time, Glazer stepped in and refused to approve the French forward’s departure. He also compared Martial to Brazilian superstar Pele, demonstrating his admiration for him.
United are now in a state of turmoil, with considerable uncertainty surrounding the club’s ownership position. Despite their intentions to listen to proposals – both majority and minority investments – coming over six months ago, the Glazer family has repeatedly pushed out their deadline to finalize a sale of the club with the ownership position at Old Trafford still unknown.
The third and final bid deadline was earlier this month, with a consortium led by Qatari financier Sheikh Jassim competing against a bid from INEOS, which is run by Britain’s richest man, Sir Jim Ratcliffe. However, the Glazers remain in charge and have the ability to dictate the club’s transfer policy.
Glazer evidently admires Martial, who joined Manchester United from Monaco in the summer of 2015. In that time, the Frenchman has outlasted numerous high-profile forwards at the club, including Memphis Depay, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Romelu Lukaku, and Alexis Sanchez.
However, in a season marred by fitness difficulties and a long-term lack of top form, Martial has only scored eight goals in 27 appearances. He has not scored in consecutive Premier League matches since the 2019/20 season, which is not ideal for a club with United’s objectives.
Ten Hag, Martial’s fifth manager at United, has publicly expressed his appreciation and support for the striker. “When he’s on the pitch, he will score,” he predicted last month. “He will link up, he will do well in the press, he is very important to us.” When he’s in shape, he’s a monster for us.”
