‘Changed the game’ – Surprise Man United star singled out as the ‘difference’ in West Ham win
Last Updated: January 23, 2022 9:49 am
Manchester United’s fans have flooded to social media on Saturday evening, to hail the impact made by Anthony Martial in their side’s downing of West Ham.
Ralf Rangnick guided his troops back into action a short time ago.
On the back of a morale-boosting 3-1 triumph over Brentford in midweek, the Red Devils welcomed David Moyes’ West Ham to Old Trafford, for a crunch showdown in the race for a top-4 spot in the Premier League.
And, when all was said and done, the resurgence being enjoyed by the day’s hosts only continued.
With a full 93 minutes on the clock at the Theatre of dreams, the scoreline actually remained locked at 0-0, primed to see both sides forced to settle for a share of the spoils.
With almost the last kick of the game, though, substitute Marcus Rashford came up clutch, slotting home from Edinson Cavani’s assist to send the red half of Manchester into delirium:
Manchester United needed a win, Marcus Rashford delivered 💥
(via @NBCSportsSoccer) pic.twitter.com/NbVTKtU8As
— B/R Football (@brfootball) January 22, 2022
‘Changed the game’
But, as alluded to above, whilst it was Rashford who ultimately made the difference on the scoreline on Saturday, the Manchester United faithful, in fact, have since been quick to single out another member of Ralf Rangnick’s squad as the true game-changer.
The individual in question? Anthony Martial.
Martial, long expected to secure a departure from Old Trafford this month, was a surprise introduction off the bench inside the closing ten minutes of action today.
And, evidently, those of a Red Devils persuasion feel as though the guile and ability on the ball boasted by the Frenchman ultimately proved the key in their side bagging a winner, culminating in an outpour of praise across social media:
Martial gets the ball, holds it and passes to Cavani. Our other forwards would’ve looked to shoot.
He was the difference
— 🇲🇿 • De Gea & Toone Hive (@Utd_Paulo) January 22, 2022
Like it or not Anthony Martial changed that game
— Trey (@UTDTrey) January 22, 2022
Martial changed the game when he came on
— Moriarty (@MofeMaks) January 22, 2022
Martial a little rusty but he was the difference.
— Rochelle C. (@PopCoore) January 22, 2022
Martial changed that game, you can’t say otherwise🐐
— DÂÑÏÊL (@Wi_T_C_H_E_R) January 22, 2022
Martial changed that whole game btw, but other people would tell you different #MUFC #MUNWHU
— Joshua (@KickingDevils_) January 22, 2022
Controversial. But Martial changed the game. If it wasn’t for him we wouldn’t have won today. If it was greenwood he wouldn’t have passed the ball to Cavani.
— Kaipulla Tweets 🐦 (@Kugannnnn) January 22, 2022
Martial plays and everything clicks🤷🏾♂️
— Neduh United (@United_rebirth) January 22, 2022
Martial turned it around ngl
— Gillberg (@PritpalGill) January 22, 2022
Martial changed the game. He’s the glue. pic.twitter.com/2UBJB1e7Ya
— sh (@Shakmufc121) January 22, 2022
United were a completely different team when an actual winger (martial) came on
Greenwood and Elanga are crap
— CARRlCKERA 🇨🇮 (@TheNewCarrick) January 22, 2022
Read more:
Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick makes big Diogo Dalot claim
‘Never play again’: Leeds fans take aim at two players after Newcastle defeat
This article was edited by Ben Browning.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 36 | 72 | 89 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 36 | 65 | 86 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 36 | 42 | 70 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 37 | 24 | 68 |
| 5 | Arsenal FC | 36 | 11 | 66 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 37 | 1 | 58 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 36 | 11 | 55 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 36 | -3 | 50 |
| 9 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 36 | -4 | 47 |
| 10 | Leicester City | 35 | -4 | 45 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 35 | 4 | 44 |
| 12 | Aston Villa | 35 | -1 | 43 |
| 13 | Brentford FC | 36 | -8 | 43 |
| 14 | Newcastle United | 36 | -21 | 43 |
| 15 | Southampton FC | 36 | -20 | 40 |
| 16 | Everton FC | 35 | -19 | 36 |
| 17 | Burnley FC | 36 | -18 | 34 |
| 18 | Leeds United | 36 | -38 | 34 |
| 19 | Watford FC | 36 | -38 | 23 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 36 | -56 | 21 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 22 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 21 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 18 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 16 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 15 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 14 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 13 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 13 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 12 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 11 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 11 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
| Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 11 |
| Watkins, Ollie | Aston Villa | 11 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 10 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 10 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 10 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 11 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 10 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 10 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 10 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 9 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
| Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
| James, Daniel | Leeds United | 1 | 7 |
| Alonso, Marcos | Chelsea FC | 0 | 8 |
| Norgaard, Christian | Brentford FC | 0 | 8 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 10 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 9 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 9 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 8 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 8 |
| Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 7 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 7 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 7 |
| Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |
