Lisandro Martinez, the defender for Manchester United, has been praised by Pep Guardiola, who said he “made the difference” in the FA Cup final.
Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo scored goals to help United defeat Manchester City 2-1 and win the trophy. After the game, though, Martinez was the one that Guardiola picked out for appreciation.
“Lisandro Martinez is top five centre-backs in the world,” Guardiola said. “He made the difference on this game by playing passes through our defence.”
Guardiola has praised Martinez before; back in 2022, when questions were raised over the Argentine’s height, he stood up for him. Guardiola cut short the debate when he was asked if the 5′ 9″ Martinez and the 6′ 4″ Erling Haaland would square off.
“Erling is taller, that’s for sure,” he said. “I like when people underestimate players for the size. He can tell them I’m here and a good player. He’s a fantastic player, aggressive, good build up.
“United paid this money, Erik [ten Hag] knows him. It’s not the first time he’s played against taller strikers, he handles it. [It’s] important to be intelligent, brave. The crosses, Erling is taller, we see what happens.”
Due to his lack of playing time in recent weeks, Martinez was forced to leave the game in the final due to cramps. Martinez has missed extended periods of time this season due to foot, knee, and calf problems. “Due to my injuries, it was an extremely difficult season for me, and it’s all new for me,” he said to Sony following the match.
“I’ve never been injured in the foot, in the knee, and the calf as well. I was like, wow, this is a dream or what, you know? And I’m now, I’m really strong mentally, physically, today for sure, because I played only against Newcastle, Brighton, and now the final.
“I felt cramp in my leg, so I couldn’t finish the game, that’s why I was unhappy. But I knew that I have my teammates behind me, and they give everything.”
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