Manchester United’s Season Hinging On Lisandro Martinez Injury
Liverpool felt the full effects of Virgil Van Dijk missing the vast majority of the 20/21 season as Jurgen Klopp’s side endured some of the worst runs of form the club have faced under his management, and Erik ten Hag is suffering the same faith this season without Lisandro Martinez. The Argentinian suffered a relapse of his metatarsal injury at the start of this season which forced him to miss 22 games, and he now looks set to miss the remainder of the season with a new injury.
Martinez’s Knee Injury:
It initially looked like a routine coming together between Lisandro Martinez and Vladimir Coufal, but it ended up being anything but. The West Ham United defender landed completely on the United defender’s knee, causing him to fall to the Old Trafford turf in pain. Several members of the Argentine’s team crowded around him, including Luke Shaw in Casemiro, in what looked like genuine worry as to the extent of the injury.
Manager Erik ten Hag declared after the game that it was a bad injury that Martinez had suffered, and it would be a major setback for the team.
“Lisandro Martínez injury does NOT look good”.
“Very bad for him, we wish Licha all the best”.
Erik ten Hag on Lisandro Martinez.
The Loss Of Lisandro:
Lisandro Martinez is transformative for Manchester United. His ability on the ball in the first phase allows United to play through the lines to a level that doesn’t exist if he isn’t in the team. It’s no surprise they’ve began to look more competent with the likes of Casemiro and Martinez back in the side, as the spine of the team is a lot more experienced and solid than it has been for large parts of the campaign.
Manchester United will suffer without Martinez in the side if his injury is to be bad. A leading physiotherapist on YouTube believes the extent of the injury is not likely to be an ACL injury, which could possibly see the defender missing around 8-10 months of action. The most likely scenario is an MCL injury, which can take around 6 weeks to heal.
An MCL would not be ideal but it would certainly be better for the club and the player than an ACL. Careers have been ruined off the back of an injury like that, with many suggesting Virgil Van Dijk hasn’t looked anywhere near the same player since he suffered the injury against Everton in 2020.
News is yet to filter through on the official extent of the injury, but Manchester United are set to carry out an exam on the area today to determine what they’re dealing with. Argentine media are expected to have the news before it is released into the public by the club, as Lisandro’s team have reached out in the past to alert them of the news.
How Do United Cope?
Victor Lindelof’s return comes at the right time for United, but he still won’t cover the gap left by Martinez in the back four. Harry Maguire has been back to his best this season, so it may be the return of his partnership with Raphael Varane for the remainder of the campaign, if the Frenchman can stay fit.
Luke Shaw has of course played at centre-back before, but that is unlikely to happen until Tyrell Malacia is back in the team. There is currently do date determined for when the former Feyenoord defender will return from his knee injury.
It’s a major blow for United, and we here at AttackingFootball will bring you the official news as soon as it breaks regarding the extent of the injury.
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