11 months ago
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Manchester United look set to avoid paying millions to Monaco due to a clause in Anthony Martial's contract that will go unfulfilled.
Martial is preparing to leave United this summer when his contract expires.
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It means he is free to speak to foreign clubs about joining them, while the Red Devils could even sell the player to recoup some cash before his impending departure.
But one thing is for sure - Monaco, who sold him to United in 2015 - are set to miss out on £7.2million.
The original deal was worth £36m upfront cash with three further payments worth £7.2m depending if certain conditions were met.
However, only one of the clauses has been met, meaning the overall deal will end up costing United £43.2m instead of £57.6m.
The first missed clause already came about after Martial failed to make 25 caps in four years for France while the second was dependent on the player winning the Ballon d'Or.
That may draw derision given his limited playing time, but when Monaco sold him the sky was the limit.
In 2015 Martial was tipped to become one of the best players in the world.
The young forward was making huge waves after scoring 12 times in 48 appearances as he broke into the first-team as a 17-year-old.
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He was even likened to Thierry Henry at one point.
Martial won the Golden Boy award - a prestigious prize given to the best player in the world aged under 21 - following in footsteps of football greats, too.
Previous recipients of the award include Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney and Sergio Aguero, while winners since count Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham.
It was then no surprise to see a Ballon d'Or clause included in Martial's original deal to United, even being heralded as good business.
His blistering start to life at Old Trafford also reinforced the notion he was going to dominate. A goal against Liverpool was widely praised then he scored twice on his first Premier League start.
While the full £57.6m has not been paid by United, the original £36m was already enough to smash the transfer record for a teenager at the time.
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The Red Devils had set that record before when they signed Luke Shaw for £27m a year before.
But Martial's time at United has been a disappointment overall, scoring 90 times in 317 appearances.
After impressing in 2019/20 under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer where he scored 23 times in all competitions, it looked like he would finally fulfil his potential.
However, the striker's form fell off a cliff - scoring just 12 league goals in four years since, while a loan to Sevilla in 2022 did not pull up any trees.
It has led to United deciding to allow Martial to leave at the end of the season when his contract expires despite having the option to extend by another year.
