Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez “faces a fight” for his Old Trafford future amid concerns over the 28-year-old’s fitness, according to a new report.
Stay Fit Or Be Sold
Martinez’s contract expires at the end of this season, though the club retains the right to trigger an automatic one-year extension should they wish. The plan is to exercise this option before January, as the Argentina international would be free to hold talks with clubs outside of England at this point.
However, talkSPORT reveals there is a “feeling inside the corridors of power at Carrington that [Martinez] needs to prove his ability to stay fit or be sold next summer.”
Having missed close to half of the Red Devils’ fixtures since arriving from Ajax for £56.7 million in 2022, this is a reasonable concern for the hierarchy. El Carnicero – ‘The Butcher’ in Spanish, as he was nicknamed in Holland – turns 29 in January, and there would be reticence to reward him with a new long-term contract even without his torrid injury record.
United’s dismal 2-0 defeat against newly promoted Hull City on the opening weekend of the new season offered further evidence of the difficult decision on INEOS’s hands – with Martinez both a solution and a problem for Michael Carrick’s backline.
A Strength And A Weakness
In possession, Martinez is among the best central defenders in Europe, if not the best. There are few who offer the same incisive passing through the lines, or the comfort stepping into midfield.
However, once the ball is lost, he can become something of a liability for his side, particularly aerially. While short centre-backs have succeeded, he offers neither the pace nor power that, for example, someone like his former teammate in Amsterdam, Jurrien Timber, possesses.
At the MKM Stadium, Manchester United missed Martinez’s ability to help progress play forward. Neither Ayden Heaven – playing in his stead – nor Harry Maguire were able to replace it.
But both of Hull City’s goals came from set-pieces, an area where Martinez would have done little to help. If anything, the direct approach the Tigers employed may have further exposed United were the Argentine on the field instead of the more imposing 6’2″ frame of Heaven.
This contradiction – where Carrick’s side are better in the opposition half with Martinez on the pitch, but potentially more susceptible in their own – will arguably be as important a factor for the Old Trafford hierarchy to consider ahead of next summer.
If it is decided that the increasingly physical nature of Premier League football requires defenders able to dominate without the ball as much as on it, Martinez’s future in M16 will be a precarious one.
Final Thoughts
A combination of Martinez’s inability to stay fit and the fact that Heaven has emerged as a worthy successor since signing from Arsenal in 2025 offers justification for INEOS to cash in next summer. El Carnicero will need to be at his incisive best – and soon – to convince his bosses otherwise.
Featured image Carl Recine via Getty Images
