Manchester United forward Anthony Martial has reportedly emerged as a potential target for Barcelona this summer.
According to a report by Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona have been monitoring Anthony Martial closely for quite some time now. However, there is no indication as to whether the Catalan giants will make a move for the Manchester United forward in the summer transfer window.
Martial arrived at Manchester United from AS Monaco in the summer of 2015 as a largely unknown quantity among Premier League watchers. Signed on a big-money deal, there was some skepticism attached to his signing, but Martial proved the naysayers wrong by ending 2015/16 as the Red Devils’ top scorer.
Since then, the 25-year-old has blown hot and cold at an alarming rate, best indicated by the fact that he was Manchester United’s top scorer in the 2019/20 season before managing a paltry return of seven goals and nine assists in 36 appearances across all competitions. Despite his inconsistent nature, though, Barcelona seem to be showing an interest in the French forward.
Barcelona have already bolstered their attack this summer by signing Memphis Depay and Sergio Aguero. However, while the duo will boost Ronald Koeman’s options out in front, it is important to note that the futures of Ousmane Dembele and Antoine Griezmann are uncertain for different reasons.
While Dembele has been stalling on a contract renewal for a long time and could be offloaded this summer, Griezmann’s eye-watering wages are problematic for Barcelona amid their financial woes. As a result, the French forward has been linked with a summer exit, with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Atletico Madrid linked with the 30-year-old.
As a result, Barcelona will perhaps need to reinforce their attacking unit with a third arrival of the window, with Martial emerging as a viable target. However, while the report adds that Barcelona have been closely following the Manchester United star, there is no mention of the Catalan outfit actually pushing for a summer move.
Manchester United, on their part, are believed to be open to a sale this summer, especially with Mason Greenwood tipped for a bright future at the tip of the attacking unit. As for Barcelona, it will be interesting to see if they make a move for Martial or if they turn their attention to someone else, with Raheem Sterling among the options on their radar.
