Manchester United were pitch-perfect to beat Manchester City at Old Trafford on Saturday, with Lisandro Martinez’s defensive performance key.
It was a rare clean sheet during Manchester United’s 2-0 win over Manchester City, with Lisandro Martinez really stepping up.
This was following Nicky Butt’s wrong criticisms of Martinez in the build-up, in which he claimed that Erling “would pick Martinez up and run with him.”
He even added that he expected it to be like “a dad at school running down the road with a little toddler”, despite Martinez getting the better of Haaland over the years.
Well, in the 2-0 win, Martinez once again locked Haaland up, with Patrice Evra reacting.
Lisandro Martinez silenced the critics to dominate Erling Haaland AGAIN
What did you think of his performance?
Patrice Evra stands up for Lisandro Martinez against Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes
During the game, Martinez made Nicky Butt look silly as he beat Haaland physically and mentally until the Norwegian was taken off with 10 minutes to go.
After the performance, Martinez posted on Instagram, writing a message.
“Great work from everyone to get the win. Thanks to the fans for the support. Get in, Red Devils!”
In the comments of this post, Martinez received plenty of messages for his performance, including a response from Patrice Evra, which was clearly a dig at Butt.
“People need to respect my warrior brother, thanks”, with a heart and flame emoji.
This is true, as Martinez was being criticised over the past week, but against elite opposition showed why he is considered one of the best in the world when fit.
WHO was your man of the match for Manchester United vs City?
Let us know who you picked…
Martinez continues to silence his doubters at Manchester United
Ever since arriving from Ajax, Martinez has had to shut down his doubters time and time again, with this being no different.
The performance spoke for itself, but while Martinez spoke to the press after United’s win, the interviewer for Sky Sports made it about his height once again.
Martinez has always been written off, but despite being smaller than the average central defender, is incredibly strong on the ground and in the air, while being a league leader on the ball.
Last season, Martinez made Jamie Carragher admit he was wrong, and we expect that Butt and Paul Scholes will be backtracking on their statements on the new episode of their podcast when it is released.
He is a brilliant footballer; hopefully, he can now keep himself fit.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
