Anthony Martial spells out his two reasons for AEK Athens move, following Man Utd release

Three months on, the two big-name Manchester United players who left Old Trafford on free transfers are finally both back in employment.

Raphael Varane is at Serie A newcomers Como these days.

Though how long he stays there is anyone’s guess, the injury-hit Frenchman suffering another blow which has led to suggestions that Como could look to terminate his contract only weeks after he signed it.

Anthony Martial, who left Manchester United alongside Varane on July 1st, is another who’s involvement in recent seasons has been restricted by frequent spells on the treatment table.

So, when spelling out his two major ambitions after joining AEK Athens this week, perhaps Martial should have added a third; ‘Stay fit’.

Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images

Anthony Martial joins AEK Athens after Manchester United exit

A worrying injury record – something that must have played a part in putting off Lille and Brazilian giants Flamengo – will be nagging away at the back of even the most optimistic AEK supporter.

Martial was welcomed with a cloud of flares and fireworks as he touched down in the Greek capital before signing a £7.5 million, three-year contract, per the Daily Mail.

Stay clear of those fearsome muscle strains, and bet against AEK lifting a second successive Greek Super League title at your peril.

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But with some already labelling Martial’s signing ‘a mistake’, a player who was so highly-rated at Man United that the Red Devils included a Ballon D’or clause in his contract arrives under considerable pressure to justify expectations and a historic pay-packet which stands as the biggest in AEK’s history.

“I am very happy,” Martial said during his official unveiling while spelling out his two ambitions he hopes to fulfil.

“AEK is an opportunity for me and I will give my best to achieve things. (I want to) win trophies and bring joy to the team.”

Martial will wear the number 26 shirt at AEK. And while some have argued that the sight of Martial swapping Man United for Greek football is testament to how far his reputation has fallen, the former France international is certainly not free of expectations just because he has departed the Old Trafford goldfish bowl.

“You have come to (a club of) enormous social size,” president Marios Iliopoulos tells Live Sport. “AEK is not just a football club.

“You have joined a team with history and culture.”

Frenchman reunited with Erik Lamela in Greece

Martial joins a host of other relatively big names in Athens. He now shares a dressing room with former Watford winger Roberto Pereyra, ex-Brentford goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha, and the one-time Tottenham ace Erik Lamela.

Iliopoulos will just be hoping that Martial and Lamela can put aside their differences and let that unseemly flashpoint – the latter getting the former sent off during United’s 6-1 home defeat to Tottenham back in 2020 – become water under the bridge.

“I think (AEK play) his way of playing,” Martial’s former Manchester United team-mate Morgan Schneiderlin, who spent last season at Kifisia FC in Greece, tells Monobla.

“I’m sure he’ll have a great year, scoring a lot of goals. And he’ll enjoy AEK’s fast-paced style of play. He will help the team a lot. AEK is a strong team and Martial is the type of striker who can unlock closed defences and make the difference.”

“He’s a man who doesn’t need to talk much,” Schneiderlin adds. “When you first meet him you think he’s cold, but he likes to laugh and is just an amazing guy.”

“I think he will be fantastic for both the Greek league and AEK. I believe that he should find joy in football and have an excellent season, while he will also bring great joy to the team.”

“He likes to play from the left and get into the area to create space. He also loves to compete as a striker. But when he plays from the left, he has better movements and can shoot with his right, while he also has excellent dribbling.”

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