Manchester United: Rooney and Carragher call out Lisandro Martínez

13.10.26 FT Champions League

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Lisandro Martínez’s comments after Manchester United’s defeat to Atlético de Madrid have sparked debate. The Argentine defender criticised the club’s management, particularly technical director Jason Wilcox, for failing to strengthen the squad sufficiently during the summer. The remarks prompted reactions from two former figures of English football, Wayne Rooney and Jamie Carragher.

Rooney believes Martínez should have kept it in-house

Beaten 2-0 away to Atlético in the Champions League, Manchester United are going through a difficult start to the season. After this latest setback, Martínez lamented the lack of investment and called on the club to give itself the means to compete on the biggest European nights. The Argentine nevertheless acknowledged that the players also had to take responsibility. He did, however, feel that the management’s decisions reflected the club’s current difficulties.

Speaking on Prime Video, Wayne Rooney felt that the defender had gone too far by speaking out publicly. The former Red Devils captain understands that players want to express their dissatisfaction, but believes that these criticisms should have been made internally. Rooney also feels that Martínez may have to consider leaving, while acknowledging that Manchester United need to strengthen their squad, both in attack and defence.

Carragher criticises the timing of the comments

Jamie Carragher, for his part, was even more critical on CBS. According to the former Liverpool defender, Martínez’s comments risk diverting attention from the sporting problems and fuelling tensions within the dressing room. “These comments serve absolutely no purpose,” he explained, believing that they would dominate the club’s news coverage over the coming days.

Carragher also challenges the idea that Manchester United enjoyed an exceptional previous season. He points out that their third-place finish in the league must be viewed in context, particularly given the absence of European competition and their early exits from the cup competitions. In his view, the club’s financial difficulties are also explained by the spending accumulated during previous transfer windows and by the European revenue missed over the course of several seasons.

Aliou Toundé |

Editorfr

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