Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez did not hold back on his team after Tuesday's 2-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid, arguing the Red Devils' squad is not strong enough to compete in Europe's top club competition.
United conceded in the first minute thanks to a goal from Alex Baena, while Ademola Lookman bagged a second in the 79th minute of a dominant performance from the Spanish side. The result leaves United with just three wins in nine games across all competitions this season, which is Michael Carrick's first full campaign as the head coach after taking over the role last winter.
"We're not playing well as a team," Martinez said on the UEFA Champions League Today post-match show. "You can see the disconnection. We can't [string] three or four passes together, and the body language [is bad]. We missed some chances, we are negative, and yeah, when you play against these teams, especially in Champions League, you can't miss opportunities and you can't concede the goal we conceded in the first minutes."
Martinez used the opportunity to push for higher standards, arguing that United are capable of more than their record suggests.
"Trying to be positive and trying to be honest," he added. "We have to change, to do more. Because we are capable to do better. We have the players. But also, when you watch television and watch the games, you see the players and the managers and you put the finger [and blame them], which is right. We take the responsibility, but also as a club, I expect more. I'm not gonna close my mouth. I expect more. We need more ambition. We need to talk more about winning Champions League, talk more about winning the Premier League instead of other things."
Martinez, who joined the Red Devils in the summer of 2022, also reflected on the fact that the team has been in a period of inconsistency for the entirety of his time with the club. United's ups and downs, though, stretch back more than a decade; they last won the Premier League title in the 2012-13 in what was Sir Alex Ferguson's final season in charge, his shadow looming large since.
"Every season, we're talking about the same thing," Martinez said. "Of course, but if we don't say the truth, nothing will change."
Atleti manager Diego Simeone was also critical of United's approach over the course of the game, one that ultimately suited his side just fine despite the surprise.
"We knew what they were going to do," Simeone told the UEFA Champions League Today post-match show. "We needed to find the opposite side from where they started their press ... we knew we could find success there. In the first half, we would press their right flank a lot of the times and Baena or Grimaldo would find that space behind to launch an attack and start an important transition like we had in various opportunities. We knew that if we beat their press, we would find ourselves with tons of space to run, like we did with the first goal"
Martinez repeated his sentiments in different post-match broadcast interviews over the course of the evening, hitting a particularly harsh note in his discussion with Amazon Prime.
"Really poor," he said. "Really poor. I have to control myself a lot but sometimes is a reflection of the mirror of how is our club at the moment. We did a fantastic season last season and now we expect more from the top, more players to compete because many teams bring many players as well. Atletico have an amazing team and they deserve to win today. I expect more [investment]. 100%. I expect more from our technical director [Jason Wilcox]. I have to be honest, as players we have to do more but it is also important when you make a strong squad to be ready for this kind of night."
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