Erik ten Hag’s ‘careful’ decision vs Brentford could benefit Man Utd for rest of season

Erik ten Hag said that he’s been carefully planning Anthony Martial’s return from injury after Manchester United’s 1-0 win against Brentford.

Martial, 26, was introduced as a second-half substitute for the second time in a row.

He has suffered several injury blows this season and Ten Hag is taking his recovery one small step at a time to protect the player.

“No, otherwise he’d be an option,” replied the United boss when asked if the Frenchman was ready to start against Brentford after the victory. “In this moment he is not game-fit enough to have a start.

“But that’s also prevention, obviously when you see Anthony Martial’s (injury) record over the last years, you have to be really careful to plan it.

“And still, it can be fragile physically, so I don’t want to take the risk because I know when he is on the pitch he has a great impact on our performance.”

This could turn out to be a very smart decision from the Dutch manager. Martial was reintroduced to the starting XI against Manchester City in January following a knock off the pitch and was replaced at half-time.

Martial was in training for four weeks before he was reintroduced to the squad and Ten Hag’s choice to take things slow with the forward could mean that he’s fit and firing for the business end of the season.

His short cameo against Brentford was full of quality, especially in one phase from the left as he linked up with several players, including goalscorer Marcus Rashford, before passing the ball into a dangerous zone.

It’s no secret that the United boss rates the no.9 and wants him to be in his team each week. This careful approach to his return to the starting XI could mean that Martial can be an impact during the back-end of the campaign.