Anthony Martial’s transfer request to Man Utd could help Ralf Rangnick in two ways

Rangnick comments on Martial's Man Utd future amid exit talk

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Anthony Martial has made it clear to Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick that he wants to leave Old Trafford in the New Year, which may work in the club’s favour. Martial has struggled for regular minutes this season following the summer acquisitions of Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho.

The Frenchman made just two Premier League starts under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer before the Norwegian coach was sacked.

Since Rangnick’s arrival, Martial has been recovering from a knee injury and has been unavailable in the new United boss’ two league games so far.

With a new manager coming in, fringe players often see it as an opportunity to stake their claim for a place in the team.

But Martial clearly feels as though he’s ready for a new challenge away from United when the January transfer window opens.

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“We spoke at length on Wednesday,” Rangnick said.

“He explained to me he’s been at Manchester United now for the last seven years and he feels it’s the right time for a change, to go somewhere else.”

Rangnick went on to state Martial’s desire to leave is “understandable”, but any move will only work if it’s beneficial for the club.

It was only back in 2019 when Martial penned a new contract until 2024, with the option to extend for a further year.

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So United are in no rush to sell the talented France international, but selling now could give Rangnick exactly what he wants.

While having a player like Martial in January could present some risk, the benefits may well outweigh the danger.

Despite falling down the pecking order at United, Martial would still fetch a hefty transfer fee and it’s been reported previously that they would want to receive the same kind of fee for which they paid to sign him back in 2015.

That deal was worth up to £58.7million at the time and any fee close to that figure would be money for the United manager to reinvest in the transfer market.

And that would almost be enough alone to give United what they need to activate Erling Haaland’s release clause next summer.

It’s been widely reported that Haaland would be available for as little as £68m at the end of the season and United are desperate to win the race for his signature.

They aren’t alone, but Rangnick may well give them a slight advantage in negotiations having already worked with Haaland at Red Bull Salzburg.

United’s interim coach helped oversee Haaland’s move from Molde to Salzburg in 2019 and it’s been suggested that Rangnick will look to repeat that feat at his new club.

The Red Devils already have an array of attacking options in the form of Cristiano Ronaldo, Edinson Cavani, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Mason Greenwood and Martial.

Cavani looks set to leave next year and Martial may be another to free up some space in United’s forward positions.

And if United are able to get what they want from interested clubs in Martial, it would put them in the best position possible to chase after Haaland’s signature.

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