Manchester United fan and journalist Aaron Paul recently appeared as a guest on an episode of the Last Word On Spurs podcast, alongside Ricky Sacks, Abbi Summers and Jamie Brown, following the Red Devils’ 1-1 draw against the North London club last Friday.
Despite the Spurs fans being full of praise for Manchester United’s attacking threat throughout the podcast, Paul was not so complimentary and had a lot to say about Anthony Martial. The French forward struggled throughout the game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium; earning a disappointing 6.35 rating for his performance (per WhoScored).
Here is what the journalist had to say about the former Monaco man:
“Martial is a waste of space. You can take him, waste of space, absolute shambles, he’s a luxury player you want at 4-0. Last season, when I watched him against PSG in the Champions League on the left-hand side trudging up and down and then you just sit there and think to yourself, get someone who actually wants to play for the club.”
TIF Thoughts…
Paul is perhaps being a little harsh on Martial, considering the 24-year-old has contributed 11 goals in 24 appearances in the top-flight so far this season averaging a 7.14 rating (per WhoScored). Since joining from Monaco in 2015, the striker has contributed 64 goals and 34 assists in 209 appearances (per Transfermarkt), which certainly marks him out as much better than a ‘waste of space’.
Was Martial poor against Spurs?
Yes
No
The journalist also slammed Martial’s performance against PSG last season, which is perhaps fair enough, as the 24-year-old earned a disappointing 6.12 rating for his performance in the 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford (per WhoScored). However, we feel that Paul was, on the whole, far too harsh on the Frenchman, as it was his first game back in the Premier League after a substantial break and the former Monaco man will no doubt be hoping to improve on the impressive goal tally he has accumulated so far this season, in the remaining fixtures, starting with the game against Sheffield United on Wednesday.