Was a bit strange to score a hat-trick in front of empty stands, says Martial

Manchester, June 25 Manchester United forward Anthony Martial felt a 'bit strange' with no crowds cheering his name when he scored a hat-trick in his team's 3-0 win over Sheffield United.

But the France forward said he is happy with the knowledge that they must be delighted at his feat and the club winning even if it wass watching it from their home confines.

The coronavirus pandemic has forced all sporting action to be held behind closed doors for the time being.

Martial on Wednesday night became the first Manchester United player to hit a hat-trick in the Premier League for seven years.

MUTV caught up with him post-match to discuss his link-up play with Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes, and whether he and Marcus Rashford are having a personal duel to reach the 20-goal mark.

"It was real nice. The fans were happy... no, it was a little bit strange! I know they will be happy for me and it's good to play like this," he said as quoted by manutd.com, the club's official website.

"I just want to score more goals. If I can score every game, it's a benefit for the team. I have to continue like this and to help the team win more games."

On link up play with Pogba and Bruno, he said: "They're both good players. In training, we practise a lot to link up so, today, was a very good game. We created a lot of chances, so I'm happy."

Martial said there is no competition with Rashford in terms of finding the back of the net. Both he and Rashford have 19 goals so far.

"He gave me one or two assists today, so the most important (thing) is to win. I tried to give him a chance to score – no competition, we just want to win."

( With inputs from IANS )