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Martinez criticised after attacking United hierarchy post-match

Summarised from 5 outlets · Updated 13 Oct, 23:39 · Archive

Lisandro Martinez attacked Manchester United's hierarchy and technical director Jason Wilcox after a 2-0 Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid.

Manchester United suffered a 2-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, with goals from Pablo Barrios and Ademola Lookman securing victory for the hosts. The loss extended United's winless run to five games, piling pressure on manager Michael Carrick.

In his post-match interview, Lisandro Martinez launched an extraordinary attack on the club's hierarchy. The Argentina international singled out technical director Jason Wilcox, saying he expected more from the board in the transfer market. Martinez stated: 'I expect more. I expect more from our technical director. I have to be honest, as players we have to do more, but it's also important when you make a strong squad to be ready for this kind of night.'

Martinez defended Carrick, saying the manager had not been properly backed. He told Amazon Prime: 'You can't keep changing, changing, changing the manager. What about other areas?' He added that United had spent only £163 million on new signings in the summer, according to the Daily Mail, or £148 million according to the Independent, and that other clubs had made greater investments. Martinez noted that United needed to strengthen at left-back and up front.

Martinez also reflected on the club's standing, saying: 'We did a fantastic season last season and now we expect more from the top, from upstairs, to bring in more players to compete because many teams have brought in many players as well.'

The comments drew swift criticism from United legends. Wayne Rooney told Prime Video that while he respected Martinez's passion, the defender had 'gone too far' by airing complaints publicly. Rooney said the issues should have 'stayed internal' and argued that such public statements risked causing division in the dressing room. He acknowledged that Martinez clearly cares about the club and its investment but suggested that Martinez's performances did not necessarily justify such forthright criticism of the board.

Ashley Young also hit out at Martinez for the manner in which he chose to express his views. Both former players felt that while some of Martinez's points about recruitment might have merit, making them in a post-match interview to the media was counterproductive.

The row comes as United continue to struggle, having won just two of their first nine matches of the season following third place in the Premier League last year. Pressure on Carrick intensifies ahead of Sunday's trip to Leeds in the Premier League.

Martinez criticised after attacking United hierarchy post-match
Image: Independent Sport

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How it is being reported

In this story: Lisandro Martinez · Manchester United · Jason Wilcox · Atletico Madrid · Wayne Rooney · Michael Carrick · Ashley Young

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