Lisandro Martinez Faces Unexpected Challenge from Luke Shaw for Man Utd

Does Lisandro Martinez Still Rule Man Utd’s Defense Without Question?

It is rather unusual, although it is a good thing, for Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim to be experiencing a selection headache ahead of this weekend’s all-important Premier League meeting with Tottenham Hotspur.

The roster is almost back to full fitness something previous Manchester United managers have not enjoyed for quite some time so Amorim must establish his best starting XI, with the most heightened discussion surrounding the Left Centre-Back (LCB) position.

The Return of ‘The Butcher’ and an Unexpected Challenge

Lisandro Martinez, a fan favorite, is coming back soon after being out with a bad knee injury. But The Butcher is going to have a tough time getting back into the swing of things. Since he got here in 2022, Martinez has been a key part of United’s defense.

Erik ten Hag and Amorim both really appreciate him because he’s a rare kind of player: a tough, left-footed center-back who is great at playing the ball.

Amorim said that Martinez is very important: We miss Licha a lot, especially right now. We miss how aggressive he is in everything he does. The 27-year-old from Argentina is often seen as a playmaker who sits back. He’s told to be bold when he passes the ball and to start attacks from the back, which makes him special and hard to replace.

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Luke​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ Shaw’s Unsung Resurgence

However, the long absence of Lisandro Martinez has opened the door for a very unexpected player to take his place: Luke Shaw. The 30-year-old who has managed to get rid of his own injury problems, has actually become one of the team’s quiet champions in this season.

Shaw has changed to the LCB role without any problem and has even shown that he is as good with the ball-playing as Martinez, plus he has been very successful as a simple yet effective defender with great anticipation of the game.

He has been so good that he is now a very close to holding the team in the starting line-up and this has been the result of his being on a reduced fixture schedule. It would not be right at all to state that Shaw’s return to the bench will lead to the starting line-up being upgraded, as Martinez is out of form.

In the end, though, Lisandro Martinez will add strength to the squad but first, he needs to show his fitness and good form in order to get his place back. Luke Shaw is currently holding the LCB role and thus it is a case of him losing it, if not for which, Lisandro Martinez might be on the bench at the start of his comeback, which is a surprising and welcome depth problem for Amorim to figure ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌out.