Lisandro Martinez has pointed the finger at Manchester United’s transfer strategy and technical director Jason Wilcox following a 2-0 Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid. The loss, sealed by goals from Pablo Barrios and Ademola Lookman, left United with only two wins from their first nine games of the season after Leny Yoro was sent off.
Martinez did not hide his feelings when he spoke to Prime Video after the match. He described the performance as “really poor” and suggested it reflected deeper problems at the club.
“Really poor. Really poor. I have to control myself a lot but sometimes is a reflection of the mirror of how is our club at the moment,” he said.
The defender said United had built something last season and needed more support to compete. “We did a fantastic season last season and now we expect more from the top, more players to compete because many teams bring many players as well. Atletico have an amazing team and they deserve to win today,” he said.
Martinez then made clear where he believes more must come from. “I expect more [investment]. 100%. I expect more from our technical director [Jason Wilcox]. I have to be honest, as players we have to do more but it is also important when you make a strong squad to be ready for this kind of night.”
He added that United’s failure to reach their highest level was especially frustrating after they had secured a return to the Champions League under Michael Carrick last season. “In general. Last season we did everything, we created the base to create an amazing team,” he said. “It is annoying, disappointing coming here and I am not seeing my team trying to get an amazing result here.”
Asked by Gabriel Clarke whether he felt Carrick had not been backed enough in the summer transfer window, which brought in four new players including midfielder Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos and Carlos Baleba, Martinez replied: “I don’t think so. He does his best. Every season is different.”
“You can’t stay with what you did last season. The teams knows how you play, they know every detail, if you don’t change next season is a big problem,” he continued.
“You can’t keep changing, changing, changing the manager. What about other areas? I can’t say more. Tonight it is easy to say the coach, easy to say the players but also we have to see other areas.”
Carrick declined to respond directly to Martinez’s remarks. “I haven’t seen it. After a game like this you come here to try and get something from the game and you are disappointed and can be emotional,” the manager said. “I have not seen it so I don’t think it is the right time. We all care and show that in different ways but now is the time to be together and work through.”
Assessing the match, Carrick offered a mixed view. “Bit mixed. It is a tough enough place to come and to get the start we had obviously puts us in a difficult situation but I thought we grew into the game,” he said.
“We started having some control in the second half without having real threat. Then there was Bruno’s chance and then the red card, which I felt was a poor decision. Disappointed really with the chances that we had that we hadn’t had more.
“We tried something a little different. Defensively we probably switched the play too much. We feel the game was there for us, is the biggest thing, so we could and should have got more from it. We need to find a way for sure. Tonight is a one-off game in judgement, it is the Champions League and a tough place to come. We are doing certain things OK.”
United’s defeat leaves them with two wins from their first nine games of the season, while Martinez’s comments have placed the club’s transfer strategy and technical director Jason Wilcox under further attention. Carrick, though, wants unity as his side looks to respond. “We all care,” he said, “but now is the time to be together and work through.”
