According to a report by Football Transfer on Friday October 16, 2026, according to reports published on Friday, Lisandro Martinez is allegedly planning to depart from Manchester United next summer. This follows his public criticism of the club's leadership following their Champions League loss to Atletico Madrid earlier this week.

Despite spending €173.2 million on Carlos Baleba, Andrey Santos, and Youri Tielemans, the Argentine defender was enraged by United's limited summer recruitment. He believes the squad needed reinforcements in defense and attack alone this summer.

Even though Martinez's current deal is up in the summer, United have the option to activate an extension that would keep him at Old Trafford until June 2028 for an additional year. The defender reportedly does not want the team to use that option right now.

The 28-year-old allegedly wants to leave as a free agent and is considering La Liga in Spain as a possible destination. After hearing his criticism, United's management will soon have to decide if it's still worthwhile to extend his deal.

Martinez met with club officials and manager Michael Carrick after his outburst, reportedly received a fine, and subsequently apologized. He admitted that Thursday's inappropriate speech was a result of his frustration.

"The disappointment of losing caused me to say things that were not necessarily appropriate, and for that I would like to apologize," Martinez stated publicly once more.

Martinez paid nearly €60 million to leave Ajax and join United in 2022. Even though he doesn't know what the future holds, he insists that the squad must press on as a unit if they want to win and bring harmony back to Old Trafford.