Saha tells Martial: Stay and work for Manchester United future

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Anthony Martial is struggling for regular starts under Jose Mourinho at Manchester United, but compatriot Louis Saha wants him to stay.

Louis Saha has told Anthony Martial to stay at Manchester United and work for his place, insisting competition for places is “part of the process” at Old Trafford.

Martial starred for Louis van Gaal’s side following his move from Monaco in 2015, scoring 11 Premier League goals in his debut season, but he has found minutes harder to come by under Jose Mourinho, making only 18 top-flight starts in each of the last two campaigns.

However, amid reports Martial could look for an exit in the off-season, having missed out on a place in the France squad, compatriot and former United star Saha wants the forward to stay put.

“[Not being in the team] is part of the process at a big club – the competition is there,” Saha told Omnisport.

“We all want to be in the starting line-up at our club in order to play for the national team. It’s difficult, it’s not easy.

“Sometimes we need to challenge ourselves by saying, ‘If I’m not in the line-up, if something is off, then I need to work on it’. Other players can do it, like [Lionel] Messi or [Cristiano] Ronaldo. They don’t have bad patches because they clearly can adjust and challenge themselves. We cannot see much of their weaknesses.

“The goal is clear. He has the quality to be in the starting line-up of any club at any time. If that is not the case, it’s because something is still missing and he needs to keep working.”

Saha continued: “Obviously, I would tell him to stay – you don’t need to ask that question.

“He’s a great player. His pace makes me crazy. That’s just great. I want him at United in the best condition. Mourinho needs to maybe understand how to give him confidence.

“It’s a challenge that Martial has to overcome because I think he’s able to.”