Man Utd confirm injury blow for FA Cup final as Ten Hag loses player who makes his side ‘better’
Anthony Martial’s injury woes are showing no signs of going away with Man Utd confirming he will miss Saturday’s FA Cup final against Man City.
The French striker has been hit with injury after injury this season and has been limited to a total of 29 appearances across all competitions.
Typically, Martial was enjoying his longest stint in the team having featured in the Red Devils’ final 12 Premier League matches of 2022/23.
He did not make his first league start of the season until November 13, which was Man Utd’s final match before the World Cup break.
Having missed the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle due to a hip problem, Martial was expected to start in the FA Cup showpiece at Wembley this weekend.
However, Man Utd confirmed on Tuesday evening that Martial will be absent against Man City after tearing his hamstring on the final day of the Premier League season against Fulham.
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A club statement read: ‘Anthony Martial is out of Saturday’s Emirates FA Cup final against Manchester City due to injury.
‘The France international strained his hamstring towards the end of Sunday’s 2-1 win against Fulham at Old Trafford.
‘Assessments have since revealed a muscle tear that rules the 27-year-old out of the Wembley showdown.’
Erik ten Hag will see this as a huge blow and has a huge decision to make on who will lead the line against the Premier League champions.
Marcus Rashford could move into the middle, while Wout Weghorst is also an option.
Speaking earlier this month, Ten Hag admitted that his team are a lot “better” off when Martial is available.
He said: “If you are not available, you can’t score. When he was available we played better, the team is winning games, he’s also scoring goals but he has to be available.”
This injury could be the last straw for Ten Hag after an injury-ravaged campaign for the former Monaco youngster.
Ten Hag was always going to pursue a new striker in the summer transfer window, but this could raise question marks over Martial’s long-term future at Old Trafford.
Martial spent the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla, where he failed to impress, which led many to believe his time in Manchester would come to an end last summer.
Ten Hag gave the French international the chance to impress and may be fed up having to rely on such an injury-prone player.
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