Borussia Dortmund are looking for alternatives to replace the wanted Erling Haaland in their squad. One of the targets that have emerged recently is Manchester United outcast, Anthony Martial. The 2015 Golden Boy Award winner struggled for game-time at Old Trafford and is currently playing for Spanish side Sevilla on loan. He is looking to get back to the goal-scoring touch that earned him a big-money move to Manchester United. The player led Manchester United’s attack for the past two seasons, and here are some of the stats that will show why he could be a good replacement for Erling Haaland.
Anthony Martial had just made eight appearances in the English Premier League this season before joining Sevilla on loan. The Frenchman started in two games and spent only 225 minutes on the pitch. The player managed to score one goal in eight appearances. The above heat map shows that the Frenchman featured on the left side this season. He led the attack last season, but Cristiano Ronaldo’s signing meant that Martial had to play on his favoured left side. The player managed to get 13 touches inside the opposition’s penalty box.
Anthony Martial is not known for his passing on the pitch. The 26-year old attempted 82 passes with a passing accuracy rate of 82.92%. He attempted the highest number of passes against Everton and scored his only goal of the season against them. The 82 passes attempted by him included four crosses, one smart pass, a through pass and a long pass each. The above chart shows the pass map of the player. His 15 passes have landed inside the opposition’s penalty box. Most of his passes were towards left-back Luke Shaw and attacking midfielder Bruno Fernandes.
The Frenchman attempted five shots this season in the league with a shot accuracy rate of 60%. Of these five shots, four were attempted from inside the opposition’s penalty box. He even attempted two shots from inside the opposition’s 6-yard box. He attempted three shots in the same match against Everton and managed to hit the target twice. The overall xG rate of the striker was 0.9.
Anthony Martial scored seven goals in 36 appearances last season and 23 goals in 48 games in the season before that. He has the potential to score goals and change the game for his side. Borussia Dortmund will closely monitor the situation of the 26-year-old striker at Old Trafford to secure the deal.
