Anthony Martial Admits He 'Definitely' Wanted to Prove José Mourinho Wrong for Public Criticism

Anthony Martial has opened up on his relationship with José Mourinho, admitting that he 'definitely' wanted to prove him wrong, with the Portuguese coach publicly ​calling out the forward during their time together at Manchester United.

In Mourinho's first season in charge of the Red Devils in 2016/17, the Frenchman managed to start just 18 league games, while he only played the full 90 minutes in a Premier League match on seven occasions that season. 

This continued throughout Mourinho's reign at the club, with the boss often publicly offering his thoughts on the performances of the United man. As a result, the player was soon linked with a move away from the club.

The 24-year-old has now opened up on the criticism he faced, admitting that he was frustrated by the former ​Man Utd manager's decision to publicly criticise him, but he added that it made him want to prove Mourinho wrong. 

"It’s true that I’d have preferred it if he’d told me directly, there’s no need to say it in front of everybody," Martial told ​RMC Sport, who are making a documentary about Mourinho. 

"After that, you definitely want to prove him wrong. He didn’t start me during the first few games and each time I came on, I scored. In the end, he told me: ‘You see, now you understand what I wanted’. It can get to you. You just want to show him you deserve to be on the pitch.”

While ​Martial was singled out for criticism, he was certainly not the only one to get on the wrong side of Mourinho. The now ​Tottenham boss also slammed left-back Luke Shaw for his performances, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan and others were also blasted. 

Martial was given the number nine shirt when he initially joined the Red Devils, but it was soon given to Zlatan Ibrahimovic when he arrived. However, the former Monaco man is now back wearing the number nine jersey and he is a vital first team member under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. 

This season, Martial has netted 12 goals and provided five assists in 28 matches in all competitions. 

Source : 90min