Why Anthony Martial Should Be a Key Player for Jose Mourinho's Manchester United

Anthony Martial has played fewer Premier League minutes for Manchester United under Jose Mourinho's management than Marouane Fellaini.

The big Belgian has played 881 minutes so far, spread across 10 starts and nine substitute appearances. Martial has made the same number of starts but just four substitute appearances for a total of 792 minutes of playing time.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan—who was infamously ostracised for a large swathe of the season's early going—has played 97 more minutes than Martial in the Premier League. Marcus Rashford's 10 starts and 10 substitute appearances have netted the youngster 1,045 minutes on the pitch.

These statistics show just how peripheral the 21-year-old French forward has been to Mourinho.

From the outside looking in, the manager's apparent lack of faith in his young charge seems bizarre.

We are not privy to the nuances of his performances in training or any behind-the-scenes issues that may have affected his place in the pecking order. But we can see his on-pitch performances, such as his dazzling effort against Saint-Etienne in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday. Overall, it seems clear that he should be a near-automatic first-team choice.

Let's take a look at why.

In a team that has struggled for goals, Mourinho's handling of Martial has seemed even more bizarre.

The player has seven goals in 17 starts in all competitions this season, which is impressive considering he has played just 45 minutes at centre-forward.

It is also entirely unsurprising given he managed to find a way to become United's top scorer last season, in spite of often playing on the wing. He scored goals in high-pressure situations too. From his debut against Liverpool to the dying moments of the FA Cup semi-final, the France international proved himself able to shine when the spotlight was on him.

He has not become even close to a goal-per-game striker, but a huge part of that is because he has not become a striker yet. His output is consistent for his age and the position he has taken on.

This season, he has just three goals in the league, but as we have seen, he has not had much time to rack up the numbers. He is joint-third in goals-per-90 minutes played in the squad, with 0.3, a perfectly reasonable return from the flanks. And he has everyone bar Wayne Rooney beaten for assists per 90 minutes too, with 0.5 in the league.

With four assists overall in the Premier League, he has created the joint-second-most goals.

Having Martial in the team makes United more likely to score. That was evident as he tormented Saint-Etienne right-back Kevin Malcuit on Thursday. That simple equation is a fairly powerful argument.

Barring some significant structural rearrangements, the left-forward choice is a straight fight between Martial and Rashford. On form, there is only one winner.

In his last nine starts, Martial has five goals and four assists.

There is an argument to say he has been United's best player of 2017 so far, with five of those starts—featuring two of the goals and three of the assists—coming in this calendar year.

Rashford, on the other hand, has not found form easy to come by this term. This is not about the relative merits of the two players—rather, it is about their position on the pitch. Martial looks a much better fit as the left-sided attacker. Were this a discussion about which player should replace Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front should the Swede become unavailable, it would be a more complex argument. But on the left? Martial wins by a landslide.

It's reasonable to suggest he might be better coming in off the left than he is as a centre-forward, though time will tell on that. What is not in doubt is he is the in-form choice.

Mourinho may have suggested Martial was "more comfortable" playing in the style of team that his predecessor, Louis van Gaal, constructed, per Mark Brus of Metro, but he scored so many goals in spite of Van Gaal, not because of him.

The reality would seem to be that his skill set is a much better match for Mourinho's style of play than Van Gaal's. The endless cycles of rotating possession did not do much for the young Frenchman. But the chance to pick up the ball on the halfway line with the opposition defence stretched and start running? This is Martial's bread and butter.

It was in ample evidence against Watford, a game in which many of United's best attacks came down his side—his goal and assist being evidence of that.

And in Thursday's 3-0 win over Saint-Etienne, Martial completed 100 per cent of his take-ons, had three shots and created one chance, per Squawka Football. The standing ovation he received was richly deserved.

It would seem that he fits in perfectly to the manager's plans. To borrow a Van Gaal phrase, he makes the balance of the selection much better, giving defences a whole new series of challenges to deal with.

On the right, they have to handle Juan Mata drifting inside without the ball, looking to open up passing channels while Antonio Valencia backs him up and offers a direct, powerful threat on the overlap.

Through the middle, they have to deal with the speed and guile of Mkhitaryan and the power and cunning of Ibrahimovic.

Giving them Martial's incredible dribbling skills, composure and finishing ability to deal with on the left—as well as providing Mkhitaryan with a colleague who can keep up with him on the counter attack—gives United a powerful weapon.

The team looks much better balanced with him in it.

Ibrahimovic's performance against Watford in United's most recent Premier League game was immensely frustrating. It was not that he did not take his chances—more that he so often seemed reluctant to break ahead of the ball, meaning there was often no one in the box.

However, the latter frustration was probably ill-advised and magnified by the former.

That's because the Swede is so selective about when he makes his runs in order to maximise the opportunities he creates with them. The moment comes when his eyes light up and he puts himself where he needs to be to have the best chance of scoring.

And often this season, unlike against Watford, he has found the back of the net.

Having Martial in the team gives him the freedom to sit deep, knowing that the youngster will get himself in the box whenever he can, both with the ball at his feet when running directly at defenders and when the ball is on the right in anticipation of a deep delivery.

This means defenders are less prepared for it when Ibrahimovic finally makes his break.

This works with Rashford too, but it is more effective with Martial.

United have made a substantial investment in the player. Shortly after his signing, Van Gaal said, per Sky Sports: "I have not bought Martial for me. I have bought him for the next manager of Manchester United."

Assuming Mourinho is not at United for longer than his usual three-year spell at any given club, he has to think about the next manager too. Martial could be a significant asset for whomever that is.

The ceiling on his potential is enormous. At 21, he has proved himself able to perform for one of the world's most observed clubs. He has buckled a little under the pressure of Mourinho's man management but appears to be coming through the worst of that—though it is too soon to declare which way that has gone.

But if the manager ends up failing to get the best out of Martial, the France international will leave. And as with another France international who was let go too soon, United might well live to regret it.

To avoid another expensive mistake, Mourinho has to make Martial a key part of his attack from here on out.

Advanced data per WhoScored.com.