Anthony Martial’s record-breaking move to Manchester United will not only transform the life of the teenager, but will also give a boost to the finances of a sixth-tier club in the Paris suburbs.
The striker’s departure to the Premier League will be a game-changer for Martial’s first club, CO Les Ulis, based in a southwestern Paris suburb about 20 kilometres from the French capital.
Martial, 19, who became the most expensive teenager in football after United agreed to pay Monaco a reported fee of £36 million (Dh201.7m), learnt his skills at Les Ulis from 2001 to 2009.
Created in 1977, the amateur club is also famous for having nurtured players such as Thierry Henry and Patrice Evra, who have gone on to shine in the Premier League and Europe.
Under Fifa rules, clubs that help to develop youngsters who are later transferred are entitled to compensation for all the training and education provided over the years. The so-called “solidarity mechanism” works between the seasons of the player’s 12th and 23rd birthdays.
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Martial left Les Ulis when he was 14 to join Lyon’s renowned training academy, meaning that the club will receive three years of development fees — representing 0.75 per cent of his transfer to United — worth an estimated £270,000.
“It will cover up to four or five years of our budget,” coach Mamadou Niakate said. “We are always struggling to make ends meet. This money will help us secure existing jobs and renew our equipment. At the football school, we’ve been using the same footballs and training shirts over the past four years.”
Niakate, who is also coaching at the football school, said Martial’s transfer to United will bring more money into the club’s bank account than those of Henry and Evra combined.
“Thierry was just an 11-year-old boy when he left, so we did not receive anything because the solidarity contribution does not work if the player leaves the club before his 12th birthday. He later paid for an artificial pitch for the club, though,” Niakate said.
“With Evra, we received about €38,000 [Dh156,800] in player development fees. But this is not just about the money. Our main satisfaction is that someone from Les Ulis is able to join such a prestigious club as Manchester United.”
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