New Delhi: Lisandro Martinez slammed the Manchester United hierarchy in an explosive interview after the club’s 2-0 defeat against Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday.
Martinez singled out United’s director of football Jason Wilcox as he questioned the club for failing to strengthen the team during the summer transfer window.
United manager Michael Carrick is under tremendous pressure to save his job amid the club’s horror run across competitions. Manchester United have only one win in their last seven matches and have now lost three of their last five games, putting Carrick’s job at risk.
However, Martinez believes changing managers is not sustainable, and those sitting at the top should reflect on their shortcomings. The Argentine defender didn’t hold back as he criticised the United hierarchy for failing to strengthen the squad substantially in the summer window.
“Really poor. Really poor,” Martinez told Amazon Prime after United’s 2-0 loss to Atletico Madrid. “I have to control myself a lot, but sometimes it is a reflection of the mirror of how is our club at the moment,” he added.
“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,” the defender went on.
I expect more from the club: Martinez
Martinez insisted Manchester United’s current squad is not Champions League quality as he said he expects more from the club’s hierarchy and director of football Wilcox. United spent only £150 million on new signings as rebuilt their midfield in the summer transfer window.
United’s summer spending was significantly less compared to their Big Six rivals, who invested heavily to strengthen their respective squads.
“But 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,” said Martinez.
When asked about the pressure on Carrick as manager, Martinez said changing managers regularly is not sustainable for a club like United and that those sitting at the top should face more scrutiny for the current state of the club.
“You can’t keep changing, changing, changing the manager. What about other areas? [looks up] 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,” said Martinez.
“He [Carrick] 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. Last season we did everything, we created the base to create an amazing team. It is annoying, disappointing coming here and I am not seeing my team trying to get an amazing result here,” added the Argentine defender.
Martinez’s latest comments have exposed the woes at Manchester United amid growing unrest in their global fanbase regarding the lack of investment and vision from the club’s hierarchy. United fans had launched protests earlier this season against the lack of ambition shown by the club owners – Glazers and Ineos after their minimal spending in the summer transfer window.