Manchester United star calls out ex-Leeds United winger in bombshell interview days before Elland Road trip
Leeds United’s weekend opponents fell to a midweek Champions League defeat and one star reacted furiously.
A furious Lisandro Martinez reacted to defeat by Atletico Madrid by calling out Manchester United’s transfer department - lead by former Leeds United star Jason Wilcox.
Manchester United faced a massive week so early in the season with a trip to Elland Road on Sunday following their Tuesday night Champions League game in Madrid. Michael Carrick’s side started in nightmare fashion, conceding after 53 seconds before going on to lose 2-0 after Leny Yoro was sent off.
Old Trafford chiefs spent £155million in the summer, all of which went on central midfielders Carlos Baleba, Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos. Their only other senior arrival was Leeds exit Karl Darlow while much-needed reinforcements at left-back and upfront never arrived.
Pressure on head coach Michael Carrick is intensifying after Tuesday’s defeat in Madrid left him winless in five games. But in a move similar to Ruben Amorim last year before his sacking after a draw at Leeds, Martinez pointed the finger at the club hierarchy, singling out technical director and former Whites winger Wilcox.
"I have to control myself a lot, but sometimes it's a reflection of how our club is at the moment," Martinez told Amazon Prime. "We had a fantastic season last season, and now we expect more from the top, from upstairs, to bring in more players to compete because many teams have brought in many players as well.
"Yes, 100 per cent [I expected more investment in the squad]. I expect more from our technical director [Wilcox]. I have to be honest. And also, as players, we have to do more. It's also important to build a strong squad to be ready for this kind of night.
"He [Carrick] does his best but every season is different. You can't stay with what you did last season. The teams know how you play, they know every detail. If you don't change, next season is a big problem. You start changing, changing, changing managers. But what about other areas?"
"I can't say more. Because also tonight it is easy to say the coach, it is easy to say the players, but also we have to see other areas.”
It remains to be seen if Martinez might face any internal disciplinary action but Manchester United are already short defensively. Left-back Luke Shaw missed Tuesday’s Champions League defeat through injury while Patrick Dorgu and Noussair Mazraoui are also unavailable.