Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has admitted that he had higher expectations for Anthony Martial this season.
The French forward has made over 300 competitive appearances since joining the 20-time English champions from Monaco in the summer of 2015.
Despite spending the best part of a decade with the Red Devils, Martial has struggled to live up to his full potential due to a series of injury issues.
The 28-year-old has not played since featuring in a 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth in December after undergoing surgery to solve a groin issue.
Martial will be out until April in what is expected to be his final season at Old Trafford, with his current contract set to expire at the end of June.
While he is currently out of action, Martial struggled to produce his best form in the first half of the season, scoring just two goals in 19 competitive appearances.
Ten Hag has admitted that he expected more from Martial this season, but the Man United manager has defended the club's decision not to sign a new striker in the January transfer window following the recent news that Rasmus Hojlund will be sidelined for up to three weeks.
"We were happy to bring Rasmus Hojlund in," Ten Hag told reporters ahead of Saturday's Premier League home meeting with Fulham.
"We had two strikers. Martial has done great things for us last season. So he is also on high payment in this club.
"We should have expected more, that is the truth. But to bring in another striker, that means you rule him (Martial) totally out at the start of the season.
"Then there is Marcus Rashford so actually we had three strikers in our squad. If you bring in a fourth, the prospects for the others will get short. So I thought – we thought, we had options.
"I wanted to bring in a striker in the winter but it was not possible. And we already had our problems with FFP in the summer."
With Hojlund ruled out with an injury issue, Rashford is expected to lead the line against Marco Silva's side at Old Trafford.
Man United, who currently occupy sixth position, will be looking to continue their impressive form after winning their last five competitive matches. body check tags ::
