In response to rumours that Anthony Martial would be sold in the summer, Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag claims that Martial’s fitness difficulties are his biggest problem.

The Dutch coach denied rumours that he intends to let Martial go in the summer owing to his injury issues but emphasized that the striker’s inability to maintain consistency in his team was primarily due to a lack of fitness.

“No (he does not want to get rid of Martial). If you are not available, you can’t score. When he was available we played better, the team is winning games, he’s also scoring goals but he has to be available,” Ten Hag told a press conference before United’s match at home to Chelsea on Thursday.

Due to a mix of muscular and back problems, Martial has missed 28 games this season and hasn’t played the full 90 minutes in any competition. The striker is still United’s joint-third-leading scorer in the Premier League, trailing just Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford.

He opened the scoring in his last home game against Wolves, leading to a 2-0 victory. Martial was brought off early in Saturday’s 1-0 victory against Bournemouth and failed to acknowledge Ten Hag, who regularly substitutes him as the first player.

Marcus Rashford, who missed the game against Bournemouth due to sickness, is expected to start against Chelsea. Due to a groin injury, he hasn’t played since the 1-0 loss against West Ham.

On Thursday, United take on Chelsea with the goal of securing a top-four finish in the Premier League and qualifying for the Champions League with only a point.

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