Real Sociedad are reportedly interested in snapping up Manchester United forward Anthony Martial on a free transfer ahead of next season.
According to Fichajes, La Liga mainstays Real Sociedad have earmarked Manchester United centre-forward Anthony Martial as a potential striking target for the summer of 2024.
The 27-year-old is in the final year of his contract at Old Trafford, and suitors will be able to negotiate terms with the player ahead of a potential Bosman move next summer. He could join La Liga side Real Sociedad next summer as long as Imanol Alguacil’s team qualifies for the UEFA Champions League once again this season.
The Frenchman, who joined Manchester United in 2015 for €60 million, has been plagued by injuries during his time at Old Trafford, which has ultimately hampered his progress with the club. Despite an impressive pre-season ahead of the 2022/23 campaign, the Frenchman endured yet another frustrating season without sustained form or fitness last time out.
His continued fitness issues limited him to just 11 starts in 38 Premier League matches last season, illustrating his lack of reliability when it comes to availability. While the fitness concerns are beyond the Frenchman’s control, ten Hag is believed to have lost patience with him and hence signed Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta this past summer, pushing Martial down the pecking order.
Although he has started the last two games against Nottingham Forest and Arsenal in the new season, Martial does not have a long-term future in ten Hag’s plans. The Manchester United boss was open to move on the striker this past window itself, as an exit would have secured a notable transfer fee and also cleared a high earner off their wage bill.
However, their failure to sign another forward made his departure unlikely, with ten Hag still short in the final third despite the recent signing of Rasmus Hojlund, who was not available in the early weeks of the season through injury. West Ham were reported to be among the suitors keeping tabs on the 27-year-old in the recent summer transfer window, with Fenerbahce and Inter Milan also believed to be interested.
Although the former AS Monaco ace has the ability and enough time between now and the end of the season to turn around his fortunes at Old Trafford, it is looking likely that he will have to move away from United to resurrect his flailing career.
Should La Real beat the competition to land his services on a Bosman transfer, it would be considered a shrewd piece of business for the Basque outfit with very little risk. That said, he failed to set the world alight last time out in La Liga during his loan spell with Sevilla.
The forward has clearly put up respectable numbers when he is fit at Old Trafford, having racked up over 300 appearances for the 20-time English champions, scoring 88 goals and registering 53 assists in the process.
The 2022/23 La Liga season saw the Txuri-Urdinak qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 2013/2014 as Imanol Alguacil’s troops finished fourth. But still, the White and Blues have not spent significant amounts of the earned money of the past campaign on any signings.
Instead, a slew of low-cost, high-output deals have been made, including the loan signing of Arsenal star Kieran Tierney. And their planned pursuit of Martial implies that this measured approach will be continued next summer.
