Lisandro Martinez suffered a serious injury during Manchester United’s defeat to Crystal Palace on Sunday, and according to the latest reports, the worst-case scenario has unfolded.
Martinez’s time at United has been plagued by injuries, and over the past three seasons, the central defender has missed an average of 15 games per campaign.
This season, he had managed to stay injury-free, making 20 Premier League appearances. However, it now appears that Lisanro Martinez has suffered a torn ACL, which would rule him out for the rest of the season which is a major blow for newly appointed manager Ruben Amorim.
How will Ruben Amorim replace Lisandro Martinez?
Martinez has been a key player under Amorim, and despite United’s recent struggles, the Argentine has been one of their standout performers in 2025. He has contributed two goals and an assist in his last seven appearances, and replacing him will be a major challenge for the manager.
Defensively, Martinez has an 85.7% success rate in dribbles and has been dispossessed only three times in the Premier League this season. In 1754 minutes of league football, the central defender has been dribbled past only 15 times.
Fortunately for Amorim, he has a fully fit defensive unit to choose from, including Luke Shaw, who has recently returned from a long-term injury. Noussair Mazraoui is the most likely candidate to slot into the left-sided centre-back role. Shaw has also previously played as a centre-back under Erik ten Hag so the English defender is also an option for the role.
Additionally, Manchester United have signed Patrick Dorgu from Lecce, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Amorim considers using the left-back as a centre-back to further strengthen the backline.
While the manager has several options at his disposal, replacing the impact and leadership that Lisandro Martinez has provided this season will be a very challenging task for the manager as well as the player who’s be playing in his place.