Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has called for Lisandro Martinez to face punishment after the defender launched a scathing post-match criticism of the club's senior hierarchy. Rooney hit back at the 28-year-old's comments, describing him as 'disrespectful' for questioning the quality of his teammates.
Martinez's post-match outburst
Martinez voiced his frustration following United's 2-0 Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid, taking aim at technical director Jason Wilcox and other senior figures at the club. The Argentine defender argued that United should have invested more heavily in the squad during the summer transfer window, claiming the team had not been equipped to compete at the highest level in Europe.
While Martinez defended head coach Michael Carrick, insisting he 'does his best', he made clear his belief that United had failed to strengthen sufficiently ahead of the campaign. The centre-back also expressed disappointment with Wilcox, saying he had expected more from the technical director and those in positions of authority at Old Trafford.
Rooney: 'It's disrespectful'
Speaking to Amazon Prime, Rooney insisted that some form of disciplinary action was necessary. He said: "The board have to look at that, and they probably have to take some action on that, because that's just disrespecting the whole football club. Yes, there's issues, everyone wants more players and better players, but this is the players you've got. As a player, you've got to get on with it. You've got to go and show why you're a World Cup winner, as I said before. So, I think the board have to either come out and speak on it, or maybe he's done that to flush them out and get them to speak to the fans, but I just think it's the wrong time, and it's not going to help anyone."
Addressing Martinez's decision to speak out after the game, Rooney said: "It's a difficult one because I always used to feel like I was outspoken as a player, and you want to have your opinion, but I think he's maybe gone too far; that should be down to the manager, and that should stay internal because the fans want to hear the players speak and they want to see them care.
"He clearly cares and wants the club to invest more money and more players, and if they do that, I think he'll be one of the players out the door if I'm being honest with his performances. His performances haven't been good enough but I think in some ways he is right, in terms of the club need to invest more at the top end of the pitch and in defence as well. I think it looks like that was a bit of an agenda from him because that doesn't mirror the performance. I thought the performance was better."
Rooney: 'It was premeditated'
Rooney went on to add: "I think Martinez was very premeditated. Why is he doing the interview after this game? Has he put himself forward, I very rarely hear him speak. It looked a bit premeditated and something he spoke about with his team to get out there. It's sad because when you need everyone to stick together as players, you can't be told what's going on above you.
"So you need them players, the manager, the coaching staff to stick together when you're having a difficult time; otherwise, something like that will rip a dressing room apart. I think it's a bit disrespectful to his team-mates as well because he's disrespecting his team-mates, he's saying they're not good enough. So he's saying his team-mates aren't good enough, so it's disrespectful. I think Bruno is probably the only one who has any right coming out and saying something like that if I'm being honest as captain. And even then, it should be behind closed doors if there are issues, which does happen.
"Players have conversations with the manager, the manager then has a conversation with the board, but that interview there, it's not going to help the situation the club is in at the minute. Now all that's going to bring is more noise around it, the players are unhappy, they're unsettled, they don't trust in their own team-mates, that's not going to help at all."
Rooney questions Martinez's fan connection
When pressed on whether he believed Martinez was attempting to align himself with sections of the fanbase, Rooney responded: "I don't think he's really connected with the fans since he's been here, to be honest, because he's been injured a lot. I actually like him, I think he's a good player, but he's been injured, so for the money the Man United pay for him, he hasn't given the service back really. From that point of view, that's not me being disrespectful, I just think he's had a lot of injuries and hasn't played that much.
"So I think he's trying to speak on behalf of the players if you like, but I think he's done it in the wrong way, as I said before, I think that should be from the captain if that's the case. For me, it's disrespectful to his teammates. I had a similar situation when I went in and asked Alex Ferguson about what players we were bringing in, and I apologised two days later. So I can speak from experience of what he's just done, I think it is very disrespectful, there's a lot of young players in that dressing room as well that need some guidance from experienced players."
Ashley Young echoes Rooney's sentiments
Former United star Ashley Young echoed Rooney's sentiments, believing that Martinez's remarks would create difficulties for Carrick in the days ahead. "Of course, there is a lot of it that the players are talking about it," Young said. "We spoke before the game about how the club needed to invest more, but when they've invested in the midfield but what does he want?
"Go and buy a whole new team? They're not going to do that. They need to start in different positions. They could've bought up front or in defence but they didn't. He's just come off the pitch, emotions are running high, we know that. But we know the recruitment has to work, it has to be better but they've got to take time and do it.
"The players have got to take it upon themselves, 'we're the players that are in this team, we're the players who are in this squad and go out on the pitch. They are the ones who have to go and produce and show what they're about. There's not going to be any change now until January."
