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Mourinho warns Manchester United’s Martial to prove his worth

Anthony Martial still has work to do to convince Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho he is worthy of a regular starting place in his Premier League line-up.


French forward Martial, signed from Monaco in 2015, has endured a difficult season since Mourinho’s arrival.
Martial has scored just two league goals this term and has drawn criticism recently from his manager, leading to speculation that he might be leaving Old Trafford during the January transfer window.
No move has materialised and Mourinho was adamant that the 21-year-old would be staying with the club.
Martial was handed a starting opportunity in the weekend FA Cup win over Championship club Wigan.
He improved after a poor first-half showing, assisting on two goals in the 4-0 victory.
But as Mourinho prepared for his side’s next fixture, a home Premier League meeting with Hull on Wednesday, the United manager revealed Martial still has some way to go if he is to regain his trust.
“He has done enough to be on the bench,” said Mourinho. “He has to perform better than the others who are competing for the same positions. 
“His position is one where we have lots of options. Do you want me to leave Mkhitaryan out after being man of the match and playing so well as he did? I can’t. 
“The players pick themselves. I am just there to analyse what they do and try to be fair with them. Such a good performance, Mkhitaryan has to play tomorrow. Simple.”
The Wigan victory maintained United’s interest in all four competitions in which they started the season.
And despite a gruelling February ahead, in which they will play seven fixtures in all four tournaments, Mourinho insists he will not follow the example set by a number of Premier League rivals who fielded severely weakened line-ups in the FA Cup at the weekend.


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