Cantona: Martial has shades of Ronaldo

Martial's arrival at Old Trafford left many scratching their heads, particularly as the club paid £36million to acquire the France international, but he has proven a decent investment - even at that inflated price - with 17 goals and 11 assists in his debut campaign ahead of Saturday's FA Cup final clash with Crystal Palace.

Published : May 21, 2016 14:52 IST , Manchester

His incredible pace, skill in tight areas and nose for goal has drawn comparisons with Ronaldo, and Cantona says Martial is worthy of the praise.
His incredible pace, skill in tight areas and nose for goal has drawn comparisons with Ronaldo, and Cantona says Martial is worthy of the praise.
lightbox-info

His incredible pace, skill in tight areas and nose for goal has drawn comparisons with Ronaldo, and Cantona says Martial is worthy of the praise.

Manchester United great Eric Cantona gave a glowing review of fellow Frenchman Anthony Martial, comparing him to former Brazil international Ronaldo.

Martial's arrival at Old Trafford left many scratching their heads, particularly as the club paid £36million to acquire the France international, but he has proven a decent investment - even at that inflated price - with 17 goals and 11 assists in his debut campaign ahead of Saturday's FA Cup final clash with Crystal Palace.

The 20-year-old announced his arrival at Old Trafford with a stunning solo goal against Liverpool which proved to be the sealer in a 3-1 triumph, and he has not stopped since.

His incredible pace, skill in tight areas and nose for goal has drawn comparisons with Ronaldo, and Cantona says Martial is worthy of the praise.

"He's very mature for his age. I think he's the same kind of player as Ronaldo. Of course Ronaldo is a Brazilian, but he's as strong as him. Martial is skilful, he wants to score goals and he has good vision," he told MUTV.

Cantona said his compatriot had arrived at the perfect club to nurture his talent, just as United did for another Ronaldo.

"At Manchester, it's a great club for young players when you are in the academy and also when you are 18, 19 or 20-years-old. [At that age] you need to go and play for a great team and also you need to work with people who will help you because you're still a young player, just as [Cristiano] Ronaldo, the Portuguese Ronaldo, did when he came to play for United and for [Alex] Ferguson.

"He had the opportunity to win trophies but also Ferguson helped him to be the player he is today.

"And I think he [Martial] has been very clever to choose Manchester United."

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment