French striker Anthony Martial, who almost got 10 years with Manchester United, is actually thriving in the Greek capital where there is plenty of punch, but still much less negative pressure like he experienced at Old Trafford.
Now the 29-year-old is about to get a new manager who is a real ring fox. -It is about the 65-year-old Spanish manager Rafael Benitez, who on several occasions has had Anthony Martial on the block of exciting players.
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Rafael Benitez is on his way to take over as manager of AEK Athens.
Benitez’s return to football
The experienced Spanish coach has been out of work since leaving Celta Vigo in March 2024. Benitez, who has previously coached Liverpool, Newcastle United and Everton, is now said to have signed a deal with the Greek club, according to Spanish Marca. – His time at Everton was so bad that there were rumours that he was a saboteur sent to the blue part of Liverpool from Anfield.
In the 22 games he had for Everton he got a PPM of 1.14, we could have been part of the conspiracy theory if it didn’t get even worse with Celta Vigo where he had a PPM of 1.09 spread over 33 games.
He replaces Matias Almeyda, who was fired earlier this month. AEK’s sporting director Javier Ribalta recently met Benitez to present the club’s plans for next season.
Martial – a player Benitez has always wanted
Once the deal is ready, Benitez will get to work with Anthony Martial, who signed for AEK Athens in September 2024 after leaving Manchester United.
The French striker has had a strong season in Greece with 9 goals in 20 games across all competitions – a marked improvement from his last time at United, where he scored just 2 goals in 19 games in 2023/24.
Benitez’s previous interest in Martial
Already when Benitez was manager of Everton in 2021, he tried to bring Martial to Goodison Park. This shows that the 64-year-old coach has great faith in the player’s qualities, even though the transfer did not happen at the time.
Now he finally gets the opportunity to work with him – and with Martial’s resurrection in Greek football, this could be an exciting collaborative process.
Martial’s career journey
- Manchester United (2015–2023): Excellent start, but later decline.
- Sevilla (loan 2022): Only 1 goal in 12 games.
- AEK Athens (2023–): 9 goals in 20 games – new confidence.
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