Martial: How I Have Improved

Anthony Martial believes the amount of football he’s enjoyed in his maiden season at Manchester United has helped him rapidly develop as a player – and he feels there's plenty more to come.

The 20-year-old Frenchman has played every minute of the last 10 games and has racked up 42 appearances in all competitions for the Reds so far this term, a tally that includes 39 starts – more than he managed in both the previous two seasons combined for Monaco.

Louis van Gaal admits he would have preferred to rest Martial more often but the manager also insists his young forward’s continued involvement is testament to how quickly he has adapted to the Barclays Premier League.

"It’s not something I’d really expected, but it has been very important for my development," Martial explains in an interview with Saturday's edition of United Review, the official matchday programme at Old Trafford .

"The boss has shown a lot of faith in me and the fact he’s played me in so many games has allowed me to make progress and come on as a player.

"On a personal level, it’s gone reasonably well. There are occasions when I could have done better: I could have been more clinical, scored more goals and made more assists. Now it’s down to me to keep going so I can help the team as much as I possibly can."

Whether playing as a central striker or out wide on the left, Martial has threatened defences all season with his pace, balance and directness, scoring 13 goals in the process.

And while he recognises the need to compete physically in the high-tempo Premier League, he understandably does not want to compromise his greatest natural asset.

"In truth, I don’t really enjoy doing weights in the gym too much – I don’t do an awful lot of it, really," the Parisian adds. "I do a little bit just for muscle tone more than anything, but not a huge amount.

"I’m wary that if I do a lot of gym work, I might bulk up too much and lose that agility, so I try to limit what I do and simply do some strengthening of my abdominal muscles."