Lisandro Martinez’s future at Manchester United is in doubt after his extraordinary criticism of the club’s hierarchy, and there are real questions about whether his contract will be extended when it expires next summer. United have the formal option to extend his stay by a further year.
The Argentine defender said: “I expect more from our technical director (meaning director of football, Jason Wilcox). We expect more from the top, from upstairs, to bring in more players to compete.”
Anger in the boardroom and dressing room
United’s bosses have yet to decide whether to discipline Martinez for his comments. There is anger and bemusement at what he said, both in the boardroom and in the changing room. At least one other player challenged him over his remarks as the squad boarded the plane back to Manchester.
Martinez’s suggestion that his team-mates are not good enough to compete has not gone down well with the rest of the squad. It is understood that there is no internal pressure on Wilcox over his position.
Martinez has wanted to leave Old Trafford for some time. He pushed for a move to Atletico Madrid in the summer, hoping to follow his good friend and international team-mate, Cristian Romero, who had left Tottenham for Spain. No suitable bid for Martinez arrived for United to consider.
The 28-year-old made similar explosive comments about his bosses while at Ajax in 2022. He wanted to leave that club too and called their sporting director, Gerry Hamstra, a “nobody”.
Martinez remains a key part of Michael Carrick’s squad, and United’s bosses know they must handle the situation carefully. A growing rift could cause serious problems in a defence already weakened by injury and suspension.
A defence stretched thin
Ayden Heaven started out of position at left-back against Atletico Madrid. Leny Yoro was sent off at the Metropolitano Stadium and will now serve a one-game European ban. Harry Maguire, who is 33, has his game-time managed to avoid overloading him.
Luke Shaw is injured with no specified return date. His other options at left-back, Patrick Dorgu and Noussair Mazraoui, are also absent with fitness issues.
United will focus on revamping their defence in the next transfer windows. Sky Sports News has also been told the club are looking at new centre-backs as well as left-backs.
Why United cannot spend big
One analyst said the club are no longer the powerhouse of world football they once were. “Yes, they made record revenues of £678m, but still made a pre-tax loss of £47m and are paying interest on loans of £70m,” he said. “We know they’ve got huge debts to the Glazers. They don’t have the huge amounts to spend that Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea do, for example.”
He pointed to a specific transfer strategy. Two summers ago the focus was the frontline, while this summer it was midfield, because Kobbie Mainoo was the only senior midfielder left after Casemiro departed. “The three midfielders they brought in all started last night,” he said. “£156m spent on them, and they’re all integral to Man Utd going forward.”
With Shaw as their only senior left-back, many fans have asked how United can get through this season. The analyst acknowledged the argument but said the club would resist spending on a stopgap when they plan to sign a new left-back in the summer. “They couldn’t afford Myles Lewis-Skelly or Lewis Hall, who are their real targets in that position,” he added.
“There’s a jarring at the moment between Man Utd’s financial reality and their strategy going forward,” he said. “They won’t listen to the noise from supporters, but it doesn’t change the fact they are quite understandably frustrated some of their rivals are going out and spending big when they just cannot do that right now.”
Merson: A sad situation
Merson was equally blunt about the state of the club. “First of all you have to have a good defence. If you’re not solid in defence, it’s all going to fall apart. You don’t build a house on a puddle and it’s the same as a football team.”
He praised Carlos Baleba of Brighton, though noted he is young, and said he is a fan of Youri Tielemans. However, he admitted he was surprised by the Andrey Santos signing. “I’m a big Chelsea fan, and I didn’t see anything last season to the point where Man Utd sign him and I go: ‘What a signing.’ I didn’t get that one.”
“It’s sad that Manchester United can’t afford these players,” Merson said. “They’re one of the biggest clubs in world football and they’re not able to afford a Myles Lewis-Skelly or a Lewis Hall. It’s quite sad really, where Man Utd have gone to now from where they were 20 years ago, when they were one of the greatest teams we’ve seen. It’s sad, very sad.”
He added: “Other teams are buying one player for the amount of money that United are buying three midfield players for. We all know that the more money you spend on a player, more often than not they’re going to be a better player. Man Utd are in that ‘looking for deals’ situation. They’re the Arthur Daley of the top teams at the moment. They’re wheeling and dealing and other teams are buying the already-made product. Man Utd are buying players who might be good.”