As part of our on-going Generation Next series, we aim to profile the best young players in the world here on Just Football. Rich Allen joins us to provide the lowdown on Monaco striker and #the10Series star Anthony Martial, who is becoming an increasingly important figure for Leonardo Jardim’s side.

Name: Anthony Martial

Date of Birth: 5th December 1995

Age: 19

Position: Striker

Club: AS Monaco

Nationality: French (uncapped)

I t’s not very often Olympique Lyonnais get it wrong when it comes to young players but in one fledgling striker it may be the case of “the one that got away”. Lyon’s seeming profligacy could go on to be to the benefit of AS Monaco as Anthony Martial looks to continue his rise in the glitz and glamour of the Principality.

Who is Anthony Martial?

The 19-year-old grew up in the Paris suburb of Massy, playing for his local team. At the age of 14 he joined the famed Lyon academy where he started to make a name for himself. 32 goals in only 21 games in his second season for the under-17 side demonstrated the raw potential he offered. Lyon very much saw him as the next big thing to emerge from their academy.

Martial made his debut for the first team the day after his 17th birthday in December 2012 during a Europa League game. His Ligue 1 debut arrived a couple of months later in early 2013 as he went on to make a couple more appearances that season.

Controversy arrived in the summer of 2013 with Lyon, who were keen to strengthen their finances, selling Martial to newly promoted, but big spending Monaco. The €5 million transfer fee seemed a little eye-watering to some, especially for a 17-year-old, but those who had seen Martial in action knew Monaco had made a wise investment.

Fans of Lyon weren’t happy, with a petition even being raised to try and keep Martial, but Lyon President Jean-Michel Aulas was not in a position to turn down an offer of that size, even for one of their brightest hopes.

Understandably Martial was overshadowed in his first season with the Russian-backed Monegasques, with the likes of Radamel Falcao, James Rodriguez and Joao Moutinho grabbing all the attention.

It didn’t take too long however for the youngster to make a name for himself as he famously replaced Falcao in an away game against Nantes. The picture of a shocked Falcao being hauled off to be replaced by a kid making his league debut for the club was a defining image of the season.

In his home debut for the club Martial found himself on the scoresheet in the win over Stade Rennais and he got his second a few weeks later. Game time was limited, in part due to the presence of such stellar names in the Monaco squad.

With the departure of the big names, the 2014/15 season has seen Martial see more action and whilst he has featured predominantly as a substitute, three goals and an assist demonstrate the youngster’s progress. The fact that one of these goals was an injury time equaliser away at PSG also goes to show that he can cope with the most pressurised of situations can deliver on the big stage.

Playing Style

Martial ticks a lot of the right boxes for a centre forward; strong, quick, confident. His dribbling ability is another strong area and when not playing at centre forward can also play on the wide right where his speed and skill can be utilised to the maximum. He can come deep for the ball, perhaps almost too often, meaning he sometimes finds himself out of the danger area but at 19, this is something he can still work on.

He also perhaps should be finding himself on the scoresheet more often but again this will come with more game time, especially more outings from the start. Throughout his youth team career he has proven he can score goals and with the ability to finish with both feet, he proves quite a handful for defenders. At times he tries to take too much on by himself but so much of this negative side of his play can be put down to youthful exuberance. The raw potential is there, he still just needs a little moulding.

It is encouraging for all that he is looking to his seniors to better his attitude and in veteran Jeremy Toulalan, Martial can identify a hard-working squad member; “I’ve never seen him have a bad game since I have been at the club. He is very strong and very consistent. Even in training I have never seen him play badly.” (2)

Whilst Dimitar Berbatov has been Monaco’ first choice centre forward this season, the pace and power that Martial can bring off the bench proves a refreshing change and it is no surprise that his increase in game time has seen Monaco move up the table.

Those in the know say…



Claudio Ranieri, the man who brought Martial to Monaco highlighted an issue that he saw in Martial:

“He is a great young player with a bright future, but he must change his state of mind. Sometimes the French mentality is ok … today I play well, tomorrow who knows…no, you must work very hard every day.”

Certainly this attitude issue is less prevalent in Martial than others but it gave the youngster food for thought and he has worked hard to improve that part of his game.

His relationship with the current Monaco coach, Leonardo Jardim, has been slightly tense at times this season. This was at its most obvious in the game away to Nantes earlier in the campaign. Martial was brought on as a second half substitute but was in turn hauled off less than 30 minutes later. “Tactical reasons” were the explanation from Jardim but it left Martial considering his future with the club.

Since that incident though, Jardim has put more trust in his young forward and Martial seems settled with his role for the club. Martial has gone on record to say that he now agrees with that change that Jardim made and in the Portuguese coach sees someone who can make help his progress saying:

“I feel I have evolved. In training I work harder than last year and the coach makes me more confident. He knows my qualities.”

How far can he go?

Certainly with the blend of youth and experience in the squad, Monaco is a good fit for Martial to continue his development. He has been part of the national set up throughout the age groups and continues to be a regular pick for the Under-21’s.

With continued Ligue 1 experience it is exciting to see how far Martial can go. As Monaco curb their spending, there will be further reliance on Martial to become their main goalscorer and with a dearth of quality young French strikers coming through the ranks at an international level there is a definitely a big opportunity for Martial to aim for.

SEE ALSO: The 10 Series – Anthony Martial and the top 10 young players to watch in Ligue 1 2014/15.

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Rich Allen is a regular writer for Just Football and contributor to French Football Weekly. Follow him on Twitter @rich_allen85 & head here to check out his blog on all things Rennes.