With Manchester United being heavily linked with the AS Monaco striker Anthony Martial, not many Premier League fans had even heard of him a week ago. However, Tor-Kristian Karlsen, with both scouting and CEO business on his CV, has more clues than most, and shares his opinion on the 19-year-old front man capped for France on several youth levels.
As Juan Mata is United's top goalscorer in the league this calendar year, with only five successful strikes to his name, and the club's captain and talisman Wayne Rooney finding himself in a goal drought and vast dip of form, rumours (and common sense?) are that United need to upgrade their guns in the attacking department. In that respect, Monaco's Martial is one of the names mentioned.
In that context, the former scout of clubs like Grasshopper Club Zürich, Watford, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Hannover 96 and Zenit St Petersburg and the former CEO of AS Monaco and Fredrikstad FK, shared his take on the talented youngster at Monday noon.
Technical excellence...
"In terms of characteristics and role on the pitch, he's something between a secondary striker and a centre forward. His outstanding features are attributes of smart movement, excellent close control and touch (and overall technical ability), he makes everything look simple. Very strong in one-on-one situations, obviously very quick, with change-of-pace-ability, surprisingly composed in front of goal for such a young (only 19 years of age) player", Karlsen stated through his Twitter alias @KarlsenTK.
Subsequently, the freelance football writer drew lines to a well-known former Arsenal front man and Premier League legend. "As a vague reference, he can in some way be reminiscent of a young Thierry Henry (not the spitting image, but there are similarities)". Obviously there is a reason why Martial is (was) unknown for the average football fan with no particular interest in Ligue 1, so Karlsen inevitably pointed out some flaws to his game as well.
Linked with determination issues
"On the flip side, there are issues about consistency, ability to impose himself physically and possibly a certain lack of determination." Despite players like David Silva, Santi Cazorla, Sergio Agüero and Juan Mata have proven that you - contradictory to the myth - have to be big and strong to succeed in the Premier League, after all, it still has extreme physical and psychological demands. A technically gifted player needs to have the quickest feet in the league, the vision to exploit it and the concentration to avoid drifting in and out of games. This will apparently be a challenge for the talented youngster.
TKK's bottom line was a note on the price tag issue, which United probably will care less and less about as the clock ticks on and the desperation for a partner or competitor of Wayne Rooney increases. "As for the price, Monaco clearly believe Martial is to become a world-beater in a perspective of one or two years (many "insiders" seem to agree), so it's currently all about future projections & pricing of potential. Martial could be worth 10 million in a year, or he could be worth 80 million", Karlsen stated and simultaneously put the eventual price tag behind a fogged window of blur. Not that too many at Old Trafford - fans or employees included - bother too much, as United easily could end up with a net spend of £0 (prior to this transfer) or less. In other words, money really isn't an issue. Or at least it shouldn't be, as quality should be the top priority whatsoever. Mind there really is no point in saving £20M on transfer fees, if the player's absence mean you're out of the Champions League in the subsequent season, or eventually the difference between winning the league or finishing as runner-ups.
United desperate for a striker
Without exaggerating the significance of the comparison, seeing Thierry Henry's name floating across is particularly interesting. Additionally, United blatantly lack pace in attack, so a quick player with ability to take on a man would undoubtedly come in handy at Old Trafford. In terms of the price tag, Monaco simply cannot be unaware of United's Deadline Day desperation, which obviously will have some impact, and the clock is continously ticking in the Frenchmen's favour, with United currently seeming to spearhead into the new campagin with James Wilson as the club's second best forward, as Javier Hernandez £12M transfer to Bayer Leverkusen materialised at the end of the day. That simply has to be avoided by all means for Louis van Gaal. In a worst-case scenario, Wayne Rooney picks up a long-term injury, Wilson will be the only out-and-out striker at the club, with Marouane Fellaini as the option, and that's hardly sufficient for a side wanting to win the league, and where Champions League qualification is the manager's ticket for remaining in the dugout beyond the summer.
In other words, Tor Kristian Karlsen, who as an example managed to get Celso Borges from the Costa Rican club Saprissa to Fredrikstad in 2009, before he eventually ended up in La Liga and Deportivo La Coruna after three years at Swedish outfit AIK meanwhile, should have a clue on what he's talking about, so in other words United might be in for a bargain if they succeed with landing Anthony Martial. However, obviously nothing is to be taken for granted in football, particularly not after United succeeded to secure the services of 'proven world-class players' Radamel Falcao and Angel Di Maria twelve months ago, with the pairing struggling to settle at the Theatre of Dreams.