MARTIAL IS OCTOBER'S PLAYER OF THE MONTH

Anthony Martial has been voted Manchester United's Player of the Month by supporters for the second successive time.

It's one of the closest battles we've ever had in our poll, conducted on the club's Twitter account, to decide the winner of the trophy but Martial edged it with 49 per cent of the final vote, marginally ahead of David De Gea with 48 per cent, while Chris Smalling was third.

After scooping the September prize, the forward maintained his fine form in October with some more eye-catching displays on the left-hand side. With Paul Pogba also named Player of the Month in August, it continues the domination of the prize this season by our two French stars.

Martial - who is our second top scorer behind Romelu Lukaku - has now won the fans' accolade on four occasions in his United career, after claiming it twice during his debut season in December 2015 and May 2016.

WHY DID HE WIN IT?

Martial once again stood out for the Reds during a challenging month in three different competitions, featuring in all six of our games – starting four and appearing as a substitute on two occasions.

The 21-year-old made a decisive contribution off the bench against Tottenham, scoring the winning goal in the Reds' 1-0 Premier League victory at Old Trafford. It took his tally to seven goals already this season and his impact was highlighted by the fact he went on to earn the club's Man of the Match award, having only been on the pitch for 20 minutes.  

Martial also went on to win the star man prize, as voted for by Reds fans on Twitter, after Tuesday's 2-0 Champions League success over Benfica. Despite having a first-half penalty saved by Mile Svilar, he was a constant threat throughout and was involved in most of United’s best moments in the game.

Another indicator of Anthony’s imperious form is his recall to the France squad by coach Didier Deschamps for their upcoming friendlies against Wales and Germany. He will be hoping to add to his 15 caps for his country during the international break but first will be looking to keep his place in the team and continue to impress when the Reds face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.