Most passes completed, 100% tackles, dribbles: United star back to his best under Carrick as he runs the show vs Spurs

Manchester United showed no signs of slowing down, as they made it four wins out of four under Michael Carrick at Old Trafford on Saturday. Fans might have expected the Red Devils to struggle when Tottenham Hotspur went down to 10 men, as the home side has struggled against low defensive blocks in the recent past. But not on Saturday, as they dispatched Spurs 2-0 with clinical efficiency, thereby getting the monkey off their backs. One player who ran the show from deep was Lisandro Martinez. Given time and space to pick passes, he ended up completing 103 out of 109 attempted passes, most among any outfield player. Lisandro Martinez ran the show Two out of his three long ball attempts also found their mark while he also completed a 100 percent of his dribble attempts. CategoryStatistic Goals0 Assists0 Expected Assists (xA)0.06 Defensive Contributions8 Tackles (won)2 (2) Interceptions2 Clearances4 Blocked Shots0 Recoveries7 Ground Duels (won)7 (4) Aerial Duels (won)1 (0) Fouls3 Dribbled Past0 Key Passes0 Crosses (accurate)0 (0) Accurate Passes103 / 109 (94%) Passes in Opposition Half (accurate)61 / 67 (91%) Passes in Own Half (accurate)42 / 42 (100%) Long Balls (accurate)2 / 3 (67%) Touches120 Unsuccessful Touches1 Dribbles (successful)1 (1) Was Fouled1 Possession Lost7 Total Carrying Distance255.5 m Carries33 Progressive Carries2 Total Progression152 m Progressive Carrying Distance54.2 m Longest Progressive Carry26.1 m Total Shots0 Shots on Target0 Shots Blocked0 match stats via sofascore Out of 120 touches of the football, the World Cup winner had a loose touch only once. Known for his combative edge, the 28-year-old hardly put a foot wrong at the back as United notched only their fourth clean sheet of the season, with two of them coming under Carrick. The Argentina international won all his tackles, while completing two interceptions and completing four clearances. Lisandro Martinez also recovered the ball seven times, winning four ground duels as well (all stats via sofascore). Back to his best again There were murmurs that the ex-Ajax ace would be moved on with Barcelona interested as he struggled to impose himself under Ruben Amorim. The former head coach was also contemplating shifting him to midfield to compensate for his limited aerial ability and lack of pace. But Carrick‘s arrival has once again brought out the best in him, with Lisandro Martinez starting in all four games under the former midfielder. The caretaker head coach will hope for more of the same from the centre-back as he seeks to guide United back into the Champions League. Feature image Carl Recine via Getty Images 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