Jose Mourinho has urged Anthony Martial to use the example of Henrikh Mkhitaryan as inspiration to force his way back into Manchester United's starting lineup.
Martial has been linked with a January loan move to La Liga side Sevilla after appearing to fall out of favour under Mourinho at Old Trafford, despite the Red Devils insisting that the 21-year-old is still part of their plans.
Mkhitaryan, like Martial, struggled during the early months of the season after he completed his switch from Borussia Dortmund in the summer, but has since gone on to win a regular spot in Mourinho's first choice eleven thanks to a series of impressive displays.
In an interview with SFR Sport (via the Daily Mirror), Mourinho has now called upon Martial to look at the way his team mate has worked hard to become an integral part of the setup at the 20-time English league champions.
He said: Every player is different. I had this season a situation that was more difficult than Anthony - Mkhitaryan.
"Mkhitaryan was completely open and completely understood the difference between me and other coaches he had.
"The difference between the demands of the Premier League and the Ukrainian league or even Bundesliga, complete different philosophy of play. And he worked a lot without playing, but he worked a lot to try to reach the level.�
Martial expressed his frustration about constantly being overlooked by Mourinho throughout the course of the campaign, although the France international stopped short of openly criticising his manager for fear of being frozen out completely.
Mourinho, who led United to a 3-1 victory over Sunderland on Boxing Day, has his charges playing in a different manner to predecessor Louis van Gaal - the man who brought Martial to Manchester - and admitted that the attacker needed time to get to grips with the new style of play under him.
He added: "I think Anthony is very, very young - people forget - and last season Manchester United played completely differently to how we do today.
"He was basically playing up front. The team had lots of passive ball possession, just waiting to put it into space for Anthony to go and score a goal. This season is more difficult. He needs a little bit of time to improve.�
United are next in action against Middlesbrough at Old Trafford on New Year's Eve.
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