Former Manchester United midfielder Nicky Butt has launched a scathing attack on Lisandro Martinez, branding the defender a "bluffer" and calling for him to be sold. The 28-year-old Argentine was sent off during Saturday's 2-0 defeat at Chelsea after conceding a penalty for an elbow, capping a difficult October.
Martinez's Troubles Mount
Martinez's red card came just over a fortnight after he criticised the club's board in a post-match interview, slamming the United hierarchy for not doing enough in the transfer window and singling out director of football Jason Wilcox. He was fined for those comments but has remained a starter for Michael Carrick's side despite a series of errors, including being outmuscled by Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke, who scored a stoppage-time equaliser earlier this month.
Speaking on Football Uncensored, Butt did not hold back. "That lad's a bluffer, full stop," he said. "Just a bluffer. The Butcher, his nickname is. I mean it's... yeah."
Butt's Rant Over Martinez's Attitude
Butt, who has history with Martinez alongside Paul Scholes, referenced a previous podcast comment about Erling Haaland. "He called out my mate (Scholes) and it was probably my fault, I said something tongue-in-cheek on a podcast and it was like, '[Erling] Haaland would pick up and carry him'. It was tongue in cheek, I didn't think for one minute he would even though Solanke did about a week ago."
Butt criticised Martinez for calling out Scholes, who won 11 Premier League titles with United, and for his interview criticising the club's transfer activity. "Then he's got the audacity to go out onto an interview and slag off the powers that be about buying players when he's not even playing well himself. If they were going to go and buy players, he'd be careful because he's the first one they'd replace. Performance-wise, he's been lacking so much."
Elbow Incident and World Cup Flag
Butt also condemned Martinez's elbow, saying: "He threw it in the other day. He threw it in with that elbow because that was the most obvious thing anyone could do. The reason why he did it is because he's not strong enough to defend properly."
Butt added: "He thought, 'You know what, I'll cut corners, I'll cheat, I'll put my elbow is someone's face and I'll get sent off and I'll leave all the other 10 lads, who by the way I said two weeks ago that these aren't good enough to play with me'."
Butt also referenced Martinez's behaviour at the World Cup, where he was among Argentina players who held a flag claiming the Falkland Islands belonged to their country. "Not only that, he lives in our country and he's dancing around with an Argentinian flag in the World Cup. What are you doing?"
Martinez will be banned for United's next Premier League game at home to Aston Villa on Sunday, but he is available for Tuesday's Champions League clash with Roma, where the Red Devils will aim for their first win in nine matches.
