Lisandro Martinez’s chances of leaving Man Utd come to light as a top English club shows interest after Jason Wilcox’s rant
Lisandro Martinez might face some trouble at Manchester United after speaking out against director of football Jason Wilcox. So, how likely is he to leave in January, and could he join a rival Premier League team?
After United’s 2-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on October 13, Martinez didn’t hold back. He told Wilcox and the club’s leaders they need to invest more in the team.
United brought in three new players—Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos, and Carlos Baleba—this summer, but they’ve had a tough start to the 2026/27 season, winning only two games so far, against Ipswich and Sabah.
Martinez said on Amazon Prime Video, “We had a fantastic season last year, so we expect more now. Other teams are bringing in a lot of players too. Atletico are a great team and deserved to win today. I definitely expect more investment from our technical director, Jason Wilcox. As players, we have to do more, but it’s also important to have a strong squad ready for games like this. It’s easy to blame the coach or players, but we have to look at other areas too.”
Martinez will probably get a fine or warning for these comments. Even though they lost, he seemed to support head coach Michael Carrick, saying the club shouldn’t keep changing managers when things go wrong. United have already changed coaches twice in the last two seasons.
He added, “You can’t keep changing the manager over and over. There are other parts to think about. Last season, we built a solid base for a great team.”
Some reports say Martinez might want to leave United. Sky Sports says the club is looking for new defenders in January, and the board is upset by Martinez’s words. He was linked with Atletico Madrid last summer but is still under contract until 2027.
So, could what he said lead to him leaving Old Trafford? Betfair gives him a 3/10 chance of still being a United player when the January window closes on February 2. They have him as 7/2 to join Atletico, 5/1 for AC Milan, and 13/2 for Spurs. Roma and Lazio are also in the mix, and Ajax are outsiders.
United will play Leeds United away on October 18.
Want to know more? Check out the latest updates on Martinez’s situation and the club’s plans.