Lisandro Martinez said he "expected more" from Jason Wilcox and criticised Manchester United's failure to invest more in the squad over the summer after a Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid.
Atletico took the lead in the Spanish capital after just 53 seconds through Pablo Barrios, but United responded well to the early setback, creating a handful of chances as they looked to restore parity. However, United were made to rue their missed chances when Leny Yoro was sent off with under 20 minutes remaining, opening the door for Atletico to extend their advantage and wrap up the victory.
Martinez's post-match outburst
Martinez was furious when he emerged for his post-match media duties with Amazon Prime, saying: "I have to control myself a lot. But sometimes it's a reflection of how our club is at the moment, you know? We did a fantastic season last season, and now we expect more from the top, from above, you know, to bring more players to compete, because many, many teams bring many players in as well, and today also, Atletico have an amazing team, and they deserved to win today."
When Martinez was asked if United had a Champions League quality squad, he said: "I expected more, honestly. I expected more." The defender was then asked to clarify whether he meant he expected more investment in the squad over the summer, prompting Martinez to rip into Wilcox, who is responsible for recruitment.
Criticism of the technical director
"Yeah, 100 per cent," he said. "I expected more from our technical director. I have to be honest, you know? And also, as players, we have to do more, but it's also important when you make a strong squad to be ready for these kinds of nights." When pressed on which areas needed to be strengthened, he said: "In general. I think last season we did everything; we created a base to build an amazing team. But this is something to be honest and to prove something, you know? Yeah, it's annoying, disappointing, to come here and not see my team trying to get an amazing result here. It's disappointing."
Backing for Michael Carrick
Finally, when asked whether the problem was Michael Carrick not being backed enough, he said: "I don't think so. He does his best. But every season is different. You cannot say what you did last season. The teams know how you play, the teams know every detail, you know? And if you don't change, next season is a big problem."
