When Manchester United signed Lisandro Martinez in the summer from Ajax, a lot of questions were raised about his size and whether he would be able to cope with the physicality of the Premier League. It is safe to say that till now, things are going quite well for the Argentine defender.
There was a stumble out of the gate, with Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford scoring six goals past Manchester United in the first two games of the season but since then, the defence has been solid and they have barely conceded.
On the other hand, Martinez has already established himself as one of the fan favourites. While most of the credit goes to how well he has done on the pitch, one also has to think that the questions that opposition fans raised about him have also helped in the Manchester United supporters embracing him even more.
Martinez has admitted that he has been left surprised. As reported by Metro, he told MUTV after the match against Sheriff Tiraspol:
"‘I’m a little bit surprised, but at the same time I feel very proud.‘To come here to the best club in the world and the people say “Argentina, Argentina”, it’s amazing.’"
Martinez has been left surprised by Manchester United fans
It is safe to say that these are still early days for Martinez at Manchester United and it is important that he continues to play like this.
At the same time though, if early signs are anything to go by, then he is looking like a very good signing on the part of the club, who could be a regular part of this team for years to come.
Martinez is an excellent player without a shadow of a doubt. And with him in the team, Manchester United finally seem to have a solid defence once again.
On the other hand, they look much better going forward this season as well and thus, it feels like the team are on the right path under the management of Erik ten Hag. Is it a false dawn or a new beginning? Time will tell.