Lyon's head of recruitment Gerard Bonneau, the man
responsible for the Manchester United striker's development, explains
how the 19-year-old excelled from an early age
By Loic Tanzi Anthony Martial’s bright start and swift acclimatisation to life at Manchester United may have surprised many, but for those responsible for nurturing the most expensive teenager in world football, it was only a question of when, not if.
Martial returns to United this week having dazzled in his first start for France’s national side. Olivier Giroud may have stolen the headlines as his fortuitous early double ultimately won the game, but make no mistake, it was the young newcomer who was Denmark’s biggest tormentor with his constant bursts of pace, close control and direct approach.
The 19-year-old shares his foundations with one of the most experienced players currently in the France squad, Patrice Evra, as well as Thierry Henry, the predetermined benchmark for Martial’s career, by starting out at Les Ulis.
But unlike Arsenal’s all-time record goalscorer, Martial’s initial progression was the result of a surprise rejection.
"A scout in Paris told us to come to the academy at Clairefontaine for Anthony’s trial. He wasn't even 13, we liked him straight away, but he was too young,” Gerard Bonneau, who has been Lyon’s head of youth recruitment since 2003, explained to Goal and Sportmatsa.
"We thought he’d make it into the academy and we’d start monitoring him every week, but Clairefontaine didn't take him on. So, we made a deal with his parents - one more year at Les Ulis and then join us at Lyon."
Quickly, it became clear that the traits Martial has immediately shown since moving to Old Trafford, the ice-cool composure in front of goal, the ability to effortlessly adapt to new surroundings, were evident from an early age.
"He was player with a lot of strength and quality,” said Bonneau.
"To start off with, he did not like doing the defensive work but he quickly understood that it was needed in a successful football team.
"You had to be behind him, to push him to make the effort. He was a very quiet boy, very much like now. He rarely felt under pressure but he knew how to prepare properly for matches. He was taught at our training centre to become an athlete.
"Early on, we saw that he was not only skilful in front of goal but he linked up well with his team-mates. At the time, I said he will be in French national team by the time he’s 21, he’s done it at 19, so I was almost right!"
Bonneau was also responsible for the latter stages of Karim Benzema's development in Lyon's youth team and believes that there are similarities between the pair, who could be spearheading France's attack when they host Euro 2016 next summer.
"Anthony is a player like Benzema, he likes to participate in the attacking build-up," he said.
"He likes to play and he needs to have the ball, that's what he loves. He is not a player who likes to play out wide and cross for the other."
But how does a player who has, in just over the space of a month, moved to United for a fee which could climb to £58.8 million and made his senior international debut, have the natural ability to cope with such pressure?
"His attitude is very calm," Bonneau replied.
"People mistake it for nonchalance, but it helps him a lot. He doesn't really bother about what's around him. He just wants to play football. This is a key strength and it’s because of the way he’s been brought up. His parents were very cool. Always being there for him but they never came to my office asking about his situation.
"Nowadays, we wish all parents were like that, give their son the time to became a man. That's what they did with Anthony and that’s helped get him to where he is.
"In Lyon, we were sad when he left for Monaco, but the club needed that money [€5m]. But we knew he will become a great man."
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