It's now four wins on the bounce for Michael Carrick's Manchester United. It's his first four games in charge of the club as interim head coach, and already he has already surpassed the longest winning streak that Ruben Amorim could muster in his fourteen months as United manager.
Part of the reason United have been in such good form can be attributed to a 'new manager bounce', which is undeniably playing the part as spirits around the squad seems to have risen since Ruben Amorim's departure in January. The change in fortunes can also be attributed to Carrick's style of play.
The change from Ruben Amorim's 3-4-2-1 formation to Carrick's 4-2-3-1 has done wonders for United's confidence. It's allowed for the reintegration of Kobbie Mainoo, as well as allowing players like Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot to thrive in more familiar roles.
You cannot deny the results. Four wins out of four, including against three of the top six (even if one was Tottenham). But there is one player that might be the most crucial of anyone to ensuring that this evolution of Man United keeps ticking over, and that is central defender Lisandro Martinez.
Why Lisandro Martinez is currently Man United's most important player
Lisandro Martinez has taken a fair amount of criticism as a Man United player. Most recently, he was involved in something of a feud with former United legends Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt after they criticised after they mocked his size and the prospect of him facing off with Erling Haaland. Martinez went on to assuredly win that duel, and has started every game since.
Michael Carrick's team selections so far have been largely unchanged. The luxury of having no midweek fixtures is clearly allowing Carrick to give his players time to solidify their places in the squad, and Martinez has been a beneficiary of that. He's also likely benefitting from the continued absence of Matthijs de Ligt, but Martinez brings something to the side that no one else can.
Martinez is a Champions league-calibre centre back not necessarily because of his defending abilities, which are good but limited by his height, but because of his ball-playing abilities. Martinez is arguably the best centre-back in the league when he has the ball at his feet, and that's because of his incredible eye for line-breaking passes.
Martinez has the ability to thread the ball through lines of pressing opposition, opening up channels and creating chances from deep. With the strength of modern Premier League defenders, low blocks and pressing traps are so difficult to play through. Martinez is a player who can unlock teams, all the way from United's half.
His passing talent is obvious, but his composure on the ball is also incredible. His ability to recycle play, alongside Harry Maguire, was crucial for United maintaining control in their game against Spurs. Martinez completed 65 of his 67 attempted passes against Spurs, an incredible stat given the risk factor and difficulty of some of the passes he played.
Man United are a far superior attacking team with Martinez on the field. It's important that they keep him on field as much as possible. Martinez has only recently returned from a long-term injury, so keeping him fit is the main priority. But Martinez has already proved just how badly United need him.