Anthony Martial 'felt immense pressure' from Cristiano Ronaldo at end of injury-riddled Man Utd career as French star rediscovers form in Greece with AEK Athens

The French forward arrived in England as the most expensive teenager in world football, in a deal that could have been worth over £55 million ($70m), and was backed to follow in the footsteps of Wayne Rooney and George Best at the so-called ‘Theatre of Dreams’.

Martial was, however, to leave as a free agent in 2024 having registered just 90 goals and 46 assists through 317 appearances for the Red Devils. Fierce competition for places worked against him, with Portuguese superstar Ronaldo adding to that when rejoining United in the summer of 2021.

Martial is now in Greece at 29 years, with a source at current employers AEK Athens telling The Sun: “This guy came, that guy was signed [and] Ronaldo returned during Martial's sporadic opportunities. During his limited opportunities [Martial] was facing immense pressure to prove himself and that led to injury problems.”

While Martial left Manchester under a cloud, AEK were always confident that they could rekindle a lost spark. The club insider added: “Based on our research and talks with other Man Utd players, his basic problem is that he felt a lack of trust. His confidence was damaged once he realised he would struggle to find regular minutes.

“One of them told us, 'Don't worry at all, once he plays and finds regular minutes he will immediately deliver. He's a fantastic guy and works very hard in training'. In the club's opinion, his injuries occurred because his last few appearances were very sporadic. And that affected him, it made him more prone to knocks during the small amount of time he was given. It was basically down to his limited match rhythm.

“We haven't noticed anything of concern. There's no concern regarding his training and there is nothing he needs to avoid during training. He trains properly and follows the programme just like everyone else. His metrics were perfectly fine, as was his medical. And he became match fit very quickly. He trains normally despite the demanding programme and game style. He has no issue so far.”

Martial has enjoyed a welcome return to form in Athens, as the goals begin to flow for him again, while United are still crying out for inspiration in the final third of the field after handing their No.9 shirt to Danish frontman Rasmus Hojlund.