If all goes to plan, Manchester United will be playing in the Europa League final in 54 days. The Red Devils are still in the hunt for a treble, despite a recent dip in form under Erik ten Hag. And Anthony Martial is facing a big period ahead, especially given the club’s interest in landing Tottenham striker Harry Kane.
Manchester United want a new forward, with Wout Weghorst not expected to join from Burnley on a permanent basis having netted just twice so far this season.
And Kane is the Red Devils’ main target, ahead of the likes of Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Benfica’s Goncalo Ramos.
United see the Tottenham striker as a guarantee of goals and a player capable of emulating Robin van Persie by moving to Old Trafford in the peak years of his career.
But Spurs are likely to be tough negotiators, for several reasons.
They won’t want to lose Kane, who has continued to produce the goods despite Tottenham enduring another infuriatingly inconsistent year.
They particularly wouldn’t want to see their talisman jump ship to United, preferring to sell abroad amid links to Bayern Munich instead.
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And Tottenham also want to tie Kane down to a new contract, something the 29-year-old remains open to.
One way of breaking their resolve, however, could be to include players as part of a potential swap deal.
United know they need to get some players off the books this summer, regardless of what happens with any potential takeover.
And Martial may now have 54 days to show he can be the perfect candidate to include in such an operation.
The France international has long been a player of interest to Tottenham, who actually eyed a deal for the forward back in the summer of 2015.
Martial was strutting his stuff for Monaco at the time and had found himself on the radar of Mauricio Pochettino.
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But United’s need was greatest and they ended up winning the race for the No 9, who arrived following the departures of Van Persie and Radamel Falcao.
Last year, it also emerged Ed Woodward was rocked when Tottenham called up to enquire about both Martial and Juan Mata in 2018.
It was stated the former United supremo’s heart ‘had sunk’, with the Red Devils interested in recruiting Toby Alderweireld at the time.
Ultimately, Martial ended up staying with the Red Devils.
And while he is inconsistent, the forward is one of the very best in the Premier League when operating at the peak of his powers.
Martial’s tally of four goals this term doesn’t necessarily tell the full story, with injuries often hampering him.
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But he demonstrated his ruthlessness at the beginning of the campaign and during pre-season, too, which is why he’s poised to be United’s main striker between now and the end of the season.
If Martial can produce the goods in front of goal, it will likely see interested suitors come to the table.
He would, therefore, potentially be the best candidate to include in a swap deal for Kane – especially when you consider Tottenham’s interest over the years.
Speaking after Martial was snubbed for Wednesday’s 1-0 win over Brentford, meanwhile, Ten Hag revealed he was being careful with his attacker amid his fitness situation.
“He was an option but I don’t think he was fit enough,” said the 53-year-old. “Also it’s prevention. Obviously, when you see his record over the last years you have to be really careful to plan it.
“Even then still he can be fragile physically.
“So I don’t want to take that risk because I know when he is on the pitch he has a great impact on our performance.”
And Ten Hag also made it clear he was happy to have Martial back, adding: “We have a very good frontline… a lot of creativity, a lot of intelligence, a lot of pace, a lot of togetherness…
“I think we can create more and then we will have more of a threat.
“And the balance of that frontline will be good.
“But obviously you have to play more together. So happy it looks like (Martial)’s back and hopefully he stays fit until the end of the season and we can play him.
“But we have seen with other players we have got results, we proved that… Martial is often not available but still we are there.”
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