Man Utd star hit back at manager after £180,000 fine for abandoning pre-season

One Manchester United star was fined £180,000 and publicly criticised by his manager after bailing on the club's pre-season to attend his child's birth

Former Manchester United favourite Anthony Martial once found himself in hot water with Jose Mourinho after failing to return for pre-season training. Martial, 30, departed United's summer tour of the United States in 2018 to be by his partner's side for the birth of his second child.

Mourinho was left stunned, however, when his former player chose to remain in France with his family. The fallout saw Martial hit with a £180,000 fine, equivalent to two weeks' wages, and subjected to public criticism from his old manager.

Martial, who eventually departed United on a free transfer in 2024, missed a 4-1 friendly defeat to Liverpool in Chicago that summer, yet was expected to rejoin the squad for fixtures against Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. Instead, he opted to extend his time away to support his partner throughout her recovery.

FOLLOW OUR MAN UTD FB PAGE! Latest United news and more on our dedicated Facebook page

Michael Carrick is currently preparing for his first pre-season at United and hopes to avoid such issues this summer. The fact that United are only touring Europe should avoid any such problems.

Speaking to MUTV following the Liverpool defeat eight years ago, Mourinho said of Martial's absence: "He has the baby and after the baby is born - beautiful baby, full of health, thank god. He should be here and he is not here. Now we have Real Madrid, and after that we have Bayern Munich, and that is our start.

"I just hope the boys on deserved holidays, they take care of themselves a little bit and somebody wants to do what [Marcus] Rashford and [Phil] Jones do, which is to be back a little bit earlier to try and help the team because for the beginning of the season we are going to be in trouble."

Martial, who now plies his trade for Monterrey in Mexico, swiftly fired back amid the growing frustration over his absence. The striker stood firm on his decision, insisting his "family will always come first.

"Thanks for all your posts," he wrote. "My little girl is fine, for the mum it was harder, but thank god she is better now. Sorry, but my family will always come first. Back tomorrow in Manchester."

That wasn't the sole bone of contention between the two, however, after Martial confirmed their troubles began when Mourinho first took charge in 2016. The Special One chose to strip Martial of his coveted No. 9 shirt and hand it to new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a move that clearly left a lasting impression.

"It started with the story of the number," he told France Football in 2022. "During the holidays, he sends me a message to ask me if I want to take 11, explaining to me that it's great, because it's legend Ryan [Giggs' number].

"I tell him that I have the greatest respect for Giggs, but that I prefer to keep my number nine. When I return to the club, I see my jersey with the number 11; the story did not start well [laughs ]. He disrespected me, straight up."

Click here to read article