Anthony Martial: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer impressed by Manchester United forward's 'new' attitude

By Husmukh Kerai

Friday 19 July 2019 14:32, UK

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he has been impressed by the work rate shown by Anthony Martial in pre-season.

Martial has been predominantly been used as a winger during his time at Old Trafford - apart from his first season under Louis van Gaal, when he finished as the club's top scorer with 11 Premier League goals, having been deployed as a central striker.

Solskjaer has returned the Frenchman into the No 9 role during United's pre-season games, and says he has seen a marked improvement in his work rate and attitude.

"Anthony can be a world-class forward," he said.

"If you have followed him for the past few seasons, the way he has come back to pre-season training now, his attitude has been absolutely spot on.

"There are a couple of instances where you can see a 'new' Anthony in the way that he works for the team. He has always got the quality and talent, he'll score goals, and his work rate is now improving.

"I expect him and Marcus (Rashford), the two of them, to be even better than last season.

"Of course Anthony had a top season when he first came, he was top scorer. He's had a couple of seasons where he hasn't scored that amount of goals or had that quality, but I am sure we will see a better Anthony this season."

Solskjaer has also revealed Romelu Lukaku will not play in Saturday's friendly against Inter Milan in Singapore.

The Belgium striker, who has been linked with a big-money move to Inter this summer, will not be involved in the International Champions Cup clash.

However, David de Gea and full-back Luke Shaw both could feature against the Serie A side.

Solskjaer said: "I think both will be available. Luke did a decent training session yesterday before we left, and David trained today, so we'll try to get 60 or longer out of him. It shouldn't be too difficult - he's a keeper."

Defender Matteo Darmian and midfielder Fred have both joined up with the squad, and they will be assessed.

Solskjaer said: "Today, obviously, we're going to have to see where they're at.

"They've been training back home, and Fred has been back over in Brazil and had his wedding and got married, so he's probably got loads of energy and I'm sure he's keen to join in."