Man Utd fear after Lisandro Martinez suffers fresh injury blow in World Cup final having missed 92 games in four years

LISANDRO MARTINEZ appeared to injure himself while committing a foul in Argentina’s World Cup final defeat. Manchester United defender Martinez was yellow-carded for cynically upending Spain striker Mikel Oyarzabal during an attempted counter-attack in the 41st minute. Lisandro Martinez’s World Cup final appearance ended early Credit: Getty Martinez went off before half-time in a blow to Man Utd Credit: EPA A minute-and-a-half later, Martinez was clutching his right thigh having not touched the ball or been involved in any duels. Martinez then received an awkward pass from goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and touched the ball three more times before he went down in the 43rd minute, roughly two-and-a-half minutes after he fouled Oyarzabal. Sign up for the Man United newsletter Thank you! Former Ajax defender Martinez collected his runners-up medal and left the MetLife Stadium unaided following Argentina’s fourth World Cup final loss. United’s medical staff are yet to formulate a plan for Martinez’s recovery and he is now entitled to a mandatory three-week break. The club are likely to formally welcome back Martinez at their Dublin base for a week-long training camp in August. United have scheduled their arrival in Ireland for August 8 – exactly three weeks after the World Cup final weekend so all of their internationals are available. Their first Premier League fixture at Hull City is still more than four weeks away, which offsets the potential lay-off Martinez faces. Martinez, 28, has suffered several significant lay-offs since he joined United from Ajax in July 2022. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS The centre back fractured the metatarsal bone in his right foot against Sevilla in April 2023, which caused him to miss the remainder of that season. Martinez required corrective surgery on the bone in September of that year and was sidelined for another four months. The World Cup winner’s return only lasted four games as Martinez sustained a knee injury against West Ham that ruled him out for eight weeks. Martinez then suffered a calf injury on his return amid another United defensive injury crisis at Brentford in March 2024 and he was absent for six-and-a-half weeks. Martinez missed only two games in the first half of the 2024/25 season but ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament against Crystal Palace in February 2025. He did not return until November last year. The Argentina international was unavailable for two months last term with another calf problem and his return ended prematurely as Martinez was sent off against Leeds, triggering a three-match suspension. Overall, Martinez has missed 92 United matches in four seasons due to injury. Martinez has played 110 times for United and his contract expires next year, although United are expected to trigger the one-year option. Ticket + hotel room for Man Utd games GET tickets to see Man Utd at Old Trafford with our hand-picked deals. The packages include an official match ticket and an overnight stay in a nearby hotel. Man United Home Games⚽ 30 Aug v Ipswich — BOOK HERE⚽ 13 Sep v Manchester City — BOOK HERE⚽ 10 Oct v Tottenham Hotspur — BOOK HERE⚽ 24 Oct v Bournemouth — BOOK HERE⚽ 7 Nov v Aston Villa — BOOK HERE More games available here. *If you click on a link in this article, we will earn affiliate revenue. Comment now