Anthony Martial could see his time at Manchester United come to an end in the near future, with Barcelona keeping tabs on the out-of-favour striker.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho arrived in summer, Martial has fallen further down the pecking order at Old Trafford.
Barcelona‘s interest in Martial has been reported by Mundo Deportivo, who suggest that Xavi Hernandez rates the qualities of the former Monaco man.
What went wrong for Martial at Manchester United?
When Martial signed for Manchester United in September 2015, his 36 million pound transfer made him the most expensive teenager at the time of his signing and one of the most exciting prospects in Europe.
He made the dream start to his time at Manchester United by scoring on his debut in a 3-1 win over Liverpool. After a successful first season, however, he has slowly faded out of the picture at the club.
During Martial‘s time at the club he has won the FA Cup, Europa League and the Carabao Cup, with his importance in the side decreasing year on year.
What can Martial bring to Barcelona?
On his day, Martial is an electrifying player who can give defenders all sorts of headaches. His recent years at Manchester United have highlighted that he is a confidence player and is at his best when playing consistently and has the faith of his coach.
Should he sign for Barcelona, he would make an exciting pairing alongside Memphis Depay, who has adapted well to the club since joining on a free from Lyon in the summer.
Another reason why Barcelona may want to sign Martial is because he may tempt his compatriot Ousmane Dembele into signing a new contract at Barcelona.
The Catalan club were widely criticised for signing Luuk de Jong on loan in the summer, but Martial would be viewed as a noticeable upgrade over the Dutchman.
What next?
Despite Barcelona making contact with Manchester United about the availability of Martial, they will have to wait a few weeks to see if he is put up for sale.
Since sacking Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Manchester United have been in advanced talks with Ralf Rangnick, who is set to become interim manager until the end of the season before taking on a two-year consultancy role at the club, and he may have different plans for Martial.
Xavi and Barcelona will be hoping that he is available, even if it is just on loan, with the Blaugrana looking to bring in players on the cheap in January given their current financial situation.
