Man City star warns new Man United signing Martial about difficulty of the Premier League

Man Utd signing Anthony Martial has been warned about the transition to the Premier League

MANCHESTER UNITED'S new signing Anthony Martial has received a warning from across the city that his transition into the Premier League will be far from straightforward.

 

City defender Eliaquim Mangala has started the new campaign in solid form for the league leaders but endured a difficult campaign 12 months ago after moving to the Etihad in a £32million transfer from Porto.

There were even reports that, as recently as last month, City were trying to offload Mangala as part of the deal that brought Argentinian centre-half Nicolas Otamendi to Manchester from Valencia.

 

Now Martial, the most expensive footballing teenager in history at £36m, can expect to find himself under the same sort of glare that affected Mangala last season.

"It is up to him to do well on the pitch," said Mangala, a France team-mate of Martial. "The first season can be tough. The Premier League is a tough one - totally different and very difficult. I hope he will be well received."

 



Eliaquim Mangala was subjected to a lot of pressure following his £32m move to Manchester City



The astronomical fee Louis van Gaal has paid Monaco for the 19-year-old forward could rise as high as a reported £58m depending on whether certain targets are reached.

And while Mangala believes Martial has the mental strength to cope with the pressure that inevitably accompanies such a price tag, he admits the transfer has not placed him in an easy situation.

"I do not think that the amount of the transfer would be a problem," said Mangala. "Obviously no one will look at him the same way anymore.

"United paid a lot of money for him. Let's see how he and people around him like the club or his family, deals with it, that's important. He must focus only on his football."