Anthony Martial put in a poor performance and was replaced in the second half (Picture: Getty)
Erik ten Hag has explained his decision to storm onto the touchline and berate Anthony Martial during Manchester United’s loss at Newcastle.
The Frenchman hugely struggled at St James’ Park and was replaced in the second half by Rasmus Hojlund after just 61 minutes.
It has been a poor season for Martial, who has managed just one goal and one assist in 12 Premier League matches.
Ten Hag was seen screaming at the player during Saturday’s clash – with Martial arguing back – and the Dutchman spoke about the incident in his post-match press conference.
‘It’s not about Antony Martial,’ Ten Hag said. ‘It’s about the team. I tried to energise the team, to get a reaction from the team.
‘In this moment, we had a tough period. When you are coaching you are a little bit more aggressive and that is normal.’
It is the second lacklustre showing in a row from Martial, who was slammed by United legend Peter Schmeichel after the 3-3 draw against Galatasaray.
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‘You have to look at players like when Hojlund came off, a lot of the pressure from the very, very front disappeared,’ Schmeichel told CBS Sports.
‘The guy he [Ten Hag] put in doesn’t do anything, where you had before someone who works really, really hard for the team up front all of a sudden you don’t have that pressure.
‘And that gives the other team a lot of opportunities to pass the ball around.’
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‘I tried to energise the team.’