When a player comes out after a loss and has a go at the club leadership, it always grabs attention. Playing for Manchester United where, at present, the difficulties don't seem to end cannot be easy and centre-back Lisandro Martinez, who has been with the club since July 2022, has just come out and let the world know what he thinks.
“I expect more from our technical director," said Martinez. "I would have to be honest, as the players, we have to do more, but it’s just important when you make a strong squad to be ready for this kind of night."
United's problems are far from new. The glory days are long gone, and they often look like a mid-table side. The pressure on the manager to get results is immense. It's not the case any more where you'd go into a season as title contenders; their battle is now simply to finish in the top four and get a ticket to the European competitions.
Deep Dive
Why did Lisandro Martinez criticise Manchester United’s hierarchy after the Atletico Madrid loss?
What does Manchester United need to fix beyond appointing a new manager?
Should Manchester United give Michael Carrick more time as manager?
They would have imagined that after the third-place finish in the Premier League table last season, this season would have seen a further step-up. But the start has been anything but that.
After six games in the Premier League, Manchester United are currently placed in sixth spot with just one win. Even with the advantage of having one man extra after the opposition were reduced to 10, United have failed to produce a win - a 0-1 loss to Man City and a 1-1 draw vs Spurs.
{{/usCountry}}After six games in the Premier League, Manchester United are currently placed in sixth spot with just one win. Even with the advantage of having one man extra after the opposition were reduced to 10, United have failed to produce a win - a 0-1 loss to Man City and a 1-1 draw vs Spurs.
{{/usCountry}}The 0-2 loss to Atletico in the Champions League on Tuesday would have only piled on the pressure on Carrick. But Lisandro wasn't ready to see his manager getting all the blame, as he pointed out United hadn't been able to recruit the right players to fight for the big titles.
"You start changing, changing, changing manager. But what about other areas?” Martinez said. “I can’t say more.”
After sacking Ruben Amorim in January 2026, United brought back their former midfielder Carrick as interim manager, and he had an immediate impact. He led the Red Devils to 11 wins in 16 games and secured a third-place finish. This turnaround earned him the permanent job. However, after the initial surge, United have struggled, with just one Premier League win, an early exit from the EFL Cup, and no real chance in the UCL.
Martinez was very clear that the recruitment United have done this summer window is not going to help them in their bid to compete with other clubs for the big trophies. He singled out Jason Wilcox (Director of Football) in particular.
The club have reportedly spent $213m on players in the summer window with Carlos Baleba, Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos and Karl Darlow (free transfer) coming in. The results to date suggest that the new signings have not fundamentally altered the team's fortunes.
The new players need some time to find their feet, which is understandable, but the recruitment policy is still questionable. For example, Luke Shaw's continued fitness concerns should have meant they needed to go shopping for full-backs. They didn't do that and they didn't get the established stars either.
Bruno Fernandes' form stumbles
The current run of form has also been hampered by the poor form of 2025-26 Player of the Season Bruno Fernandes. The United captain has played every minute of United's first six Premier League games, with three goals and one assist. but all four of his contributions came in the second match against Ipswich, the only game that United have won this season.
United has a history of making some disastrous transfer moves and the big-money signings of Anthony, Rasmus Hojlund, Andre Onana, and Jadon Sancho (the list goes on) seemingly fit into that pattern. The frequent changes of the team manager aren't helping either.
| Manager | Role | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jose Mourinho | Manager | May 2016 | December 2018 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjær | Manager | March 2019 | November 2021 |
| Erik ten Hag | Manager | April 2022 | October 2024 |
| Ruben Amorim | Manager | November 2024 | January 2026 |
| Michael Carrick | Permanent head coach | May 2026 | Present |
Meanwhile, the list of caretaker and interim managers is also on the same lines.
| Manager | Role | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Carrick | Caretaker manager | November 2021 | December 2021 |
| Ralf Rangnick | Interim manager | December 2021 | May 2022 |
| Ruud van Nistelrooy | Caretaker manager | October 2024 | November 2024 |
| Darren Fletcher | Interim manager | January 2026 | January 2026 |
| Michael Carrick | Interim manager | January 2026 | May 2026 |
The instability in the set-up, which has been United's undoing, is the key reason.
Martinez has been quite open about the lack of quality to compete in the big games and that's precisely what they need. Stability. They need to give a manager time, be it Carrick or whoever they bring in next.
They have Arsenal as a perfect example in front of them. They backed Arteta, and in his first two seasons, they finished 8th and then in the third - 5th. It wasn't until the third season that things changed; the team started fighting for the PL title and eventually won it last season. Things won't change at United overnight but perhaps they can start by finding a manager whom they can trust.