There is something special about a Manchester United player making his debut for the club.
And through the years, there have been some truly memorable debuts. Cristiano Ronaldo against Bolton in 2003. His second debut in 2021 too.
Few top Anthony Martial‘s thrilling substitute debut against Liverpool way back in 2015.
Ethan Wheatley‘s debut didn’t quite match up to any of those, but it may just have been the death knell for Martial’s Manchester United career.
Anthony Martial is still a Manchester United player
It’s very easy to forget Anthony Martial is still a Manchester United player. He has not played a single minute since the early December loss to Bournemouth.
Martial is back in light training, but Erik ten Hag has not seen any urgency to rush him back. What’s the point?
The Frenchman’s contract will expire at the end of the current season. He will not be retained, and will finally leave the club.
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What the Sheffield United game meant for Anthony Martial
Ethan Wheatley being called into the Manchester United squad was significant, it demonstrated that Erik ten Hag will no longer wait for Martial, he has another alternative.
Wheatley became thesixth academy graduate to make his debut under Erik ten Hag, and will hope many more opportunities lie ahead, including some this season.
The opposition was notable too, where Anthony Martial is concerned. He has history against them.
The Blades are the only team Anthony Martial scored a hat-trick against, during lockdown, in July 2020. At that point, it looked like the Frenchman was making a breakthrough.
In January 2021, Manchester United lost 2-1 at home to Sheffield United. Incredibly, this was the last time Martial played 90 minutes for the club in the Premier League.
More than three years have now passed. Ethan Wheatley making his debut against the same opponents felt significant last night, almost like a passing of the torch.
Martial or Wheatley, easy decision
It is not impossible Anthony Martial makes a return for one last appearance this season. But there is a little less reason to now.
The case for, would be that United are still paying the Frenchman substantially, and the club do need back-up for Rasmus Hojlund.
What a great story it would be if Martial came off the bench to score a winner in the FA Cup final, and leaves on a high note.
But it would make an even better story if academy graduate Wheatley comes on and scores the winner.
Why not give the fearless young player a chance, he’s the future. Martial will be too worried about getting injured again, and scuppering his chances of finding a new club in the summer.
If there are extra minutes to go around in the striker department, Erik ten Hag now has an exciting young player to turn to, an exciting young forward who has scored 20 goals for the academy this season.
There is no case to play Martial instead. Wheatley’s emergence could now have brought the Frenchman’s spell at Old Trafford to an abrupt end.