Video: “Didn’t want to play anymore”: United fan favourite considered retirement as injuries took their toll

It has been a difficult last few seasons for Lisandro Martinez at Manchester United. First, it was a metatarsal fracture in his foot in his debut season, an injury that kept him out for the rest of the season. He returned early next season, only for the problem to resurface, and he was required to go under the knife for a second time. The Argentine returned before the 23/24 season ended, only to suffer a calf strain soon after, which kept him out for almost a month. Injuries have plagued Lisandro Martinez Last season was the most difficult as an ACL tear against Crystal Palace saw the World Cup winner sidelined for close to 300 days. And as the former Ajax star told AFA Estudio, he was contemplating retirement as he simply could not deal with so many major injuries one after the other. “You feel like you’re not a football player anymore. You feel pain and think you’ll never play football again. “A mental and physical imbalance, which, honestly, when I think about it today, I don’t know how I did it. I clung to the people around me, my family, my friends. Felt like retiring “After the first two or three weeks, to be honest, I didn’t want to play football anymore. And then, of course, you become more aware, you get that support.” Like the warrior he is on the pitch, the 27-year-old fought back hard and finally returned to action during the away game against Crystal Palace late last year. “You need to not take the easy way out. The easy way out is to just give up and that’s it. But, I always say, it’s in the face of adversity that you show your true character. “So I reconnected with myself, I reconnected with my roots, with who I am, with my values, and I gave it my all, day after day. Hope he can return to his best soon “For me, it was day by day, a constant struggle, and my match was every day at the gym. Then, well, I had therapy with my psychologist, always trying to improve in every aspect, and then I was clear about what I wanted, right? “To try to become the best version of myself, to give my best, to see how far I could go. And the truth is that with each passing month, I saw the results, I saw how I was getting stronger, and today, on the pitch, I feel excellent, and I say that thanks to those days, well, of suffering, of not giving up – today we have the results.” The left-footed defender has started the last five games in a row, and is expected to keep his place in the starting lineup for the Manchester derby, Michael Carrick‘s first game as head coach. The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Ayantan Chowdhury After failing to become a professional footballer, Ayantan switched to the next best thing: writing about the greatest football club in the world. He has extensive sports journalism experience, having worked for over 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25