Man United fans will likely be brandishing their pitchforks after the CIES Football Observatory rather blatantly disrespected fan favorite Anthony Martial. The football think-tank recently released their rankings of the top young players in football, and while the Man United Golden Boy was ranked very high for his age group, he got overshadowed by a Liverpool substitute with half as many games and a fraction of his scoring: Divock Origi.
In the April edition of the CIES Football Observatory Monthly Report on ‘Spotting future stars’, the think-tank’s metric ranked Origi as the most experienced young forward in the big-five leagues, giving him a score of 75.4.
Martial, who has started 39 games in all competitions this season (nearly four times as many starts as Origi), ranked second with a rating of 69.6.
Whatever metrics CIES used to somehow find that Origi was ‘more experienced,’ it certainly does not appear to account for how they’ve grown as players.
Martial has 114 appearances for first team clubs between Man United, Monaco and Lyon – scoring 28 goals in his past four seasons and earning the prestigious Golden Boy award at the end of 2015. He has a career-high 13 goals for the Man United since joining them in September.
Origi is behind Martial in game experience in a top-five league by one game with 113 games between Liverpool and Lille – scoring 21 goals in the process, but has only five goals this season.
SEE MORE:
John Terry reveals his PFA Team of the Year: Arsenal star snubbed, Man United defender shifted
Man United trying to hijack Arsenal bid for midfield star loved by Fergie
Zlatan Ibrahimovic allegations: PSG striker accused of doping during Juventus spell