Ruben Amorim harbouring ‘doubts’ over Man Utd fan-favourite, with PL star now shortlisted to replace him

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·7 de octubre de 2025

Ruben Amorim harbouring ‘doubts’ over Man Utd fan-favourite, with PL star now shortlisted to replace him

Ruben Amorim is said to be harbouring ‘doubts’ over Lisandro Martinez’s fitness record, which could lead to the Argentine being sold before his contract is up.

As things stand, Manchester United’s No.6 has around 19 months remaining on his terms at Old Trafford, plus the option of an additional season.

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However, Amorim hasn’t been able to make use of Martinez since the start of February, when he tore his anterior cruciate ligament and was ruled out of action for the foreseeable future.

Why Martinez’s fitness is a worry

Martinez was stretchered off with an ACL tear on February 2. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Now eight months into his recovery, Martinez has yet to return to first-team training with his teammates at Carrington, with some reports suggesting he mightn’t feature until after the November international break.

The centre-half signed for the club in the summer of 2022 after being targeted by his former Ajax coach, Erik ten Hag, to join the Dutchman’s ranks in his maiden season in Manchester.

Since then, Martinez has accumulated only 91 appearances across all competitions, having never got through a full term without suffering at least one lengthy injury setback.

Martinez out, Jarrad Branthwaite in?

Branthwaite has continued to impress since United first established their interest. (Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images)

Now seemingly contemplating whether it’s worth keeping a player who earns £120,000-a-week around to spend more time in the treatment room than on the pitch, INEOS have shortlisted longstanding target Jarrad Branthwaite as a potential replacement for Martinez.

The Mirror claims both United and arch-rivals Liverpool, who meet for their first encounter of 2025/2026 when club action resumes on October 19, are both in hot pursuit of the Everton stalwart.

Branthwaite, 23, has been linked with an Old Trafford switch on numerous occasions – most notably last year, when United had two bids rejected by the Toffees.

United offered an initial £35 million for the England star’s services and, when that was swiftly rebuffed, returned with an improved proposal of £45 million, which was also declined.

They then opted to turn their attention elsewhere, shelling out a whopping £52.1m to sign highly-rated prospect Leny Yoro from Lille, as well as £43m for the experienced Matthijs de Ligt.