Manchester United fans have hailed Lisandro Martinez as the “reincarnation of Roy Keane” after he made his return against Tottenham at Old Trafford on Sunday.
United were held to a 2-2 draw in their Premier League clash against Spurs, despite leading Ange Postecoglou’s men on two different occasions at Old Trafford.
Rasmus Hojlund produced a stunning finish in the third minute to fire United into the lead before Spurs striker Richarlison pulled one back for his side in the 19th minute.
Marcus Rashford restored United’s advantage going into half-time, but Rodrigo Bentancur secured an equaliser for Tottenham early in the second half.
United picked up a point from the Spurs clash and are currently seventh in the Premier League table, with the Red Devils eight points adrift of the top four.
United boss Erik ten Hag was handed a major boost for the Tottenham match after ex-Ajax star Martinez made his long-awaited return to the Premier League club.
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Martinez impresses on his United return
Martinez, who was signed in a £57m deal from Ajax in 2022, made a big impact in his first season at United and forged a formidable partnership with Raphael Varane.
However, the 25-year-old United defender missed the end of the last Premier League season due to a broken metatarsal, which came back to haunt Martinez.
Martinez returned for United after his time on the sideline, but he suffered an aggravation to his foot injury in the 3-1 defeat to Arsenal last September.
The United centre-back was ruled out of action due to further surgery and Martinez finally made his triumphant return in his side’s first Premier League match of 2024.
Martinez came off the bench in the second half and replaced Jonny Evans, with the ex-Ajax defender showing exactly what United had missed this season.
The 2022 World Cup winner put in a superb cameo display and looked composed in the United defence, with Martinez bringing a calming presence on the pitch.
United fans missed Martinez
United fans on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, welcomed the return of Martinez and praised his stunning performance against Spurs.
Red Devils supporters admitted they missed seeing the Argentina international’s line-breaking passes, while others claimed that he is the club’s best defender “by a mile.”
“Martinez makes a huge difference. How much we’ve missed him,” one fan said.
A second added: “Lisandro Martinez is the reincarnation of Roy Keane.”
Another posted: “How I’ve missed those Martinez breaking-line passes.”
“Lisandro Martinez is United’s best defender by a mile,” a fourth wrote.
While one X user tweeted: “The only intelligent and well-composed player in this United squad is Martinez. Even Bruno Fernandes doesn’t come close.”
And a sixth commented: “I hope Martinez can get them going a bit. He does that. Has energy in his play. We’ve missed him so much.”
Someone else simply stated: “It’s so beautiful to see Martinez back.”
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