Why is Lisandro Martinez so special to Manchester United?

Manchester United is touted to be in a prime position to land Lisandro Martinez and as far as the reports go, it is almost a done deal for the Devils. However, the status quo of Manchester United begs a lot of questions that would be throwing caution to the wind, especially after a devastating season.

With Harry Maguire being an absolute fiasco, Manchester United was in dire straits that needed a defender who would provide resolute solidity in the center alongside Raphael Varane whose season was plagued with injuries.

What exactly does Lisandro Martinez make a perfect fit in the shambolic defence of Manchester United for the upcoming season. Well, there are multiple reasons to be honest but then we would unearth three of them that took the lead in forcing Manchester to make a move for the Argentine defender.

Versatility:

Going by the primary professional designation, Martinez is a man who rallied the forces in the center. However, if you need him to plug the gaps in the sides, he would never turn you down. He can be one of those resilient blocks down the center while Varane can surge ahead assisting the attacking exploits of Manchester United. He can also be those flying wingbacks down the sides who can bomb full steam ahead into the opposition rearguard and whip in those picture-perfect crosses for the attackers to latch onto.

There is another significant feat about Martinez and that is his ability to play with the ball. Despite being a no-nonsense defender, he loves to keep the ball under control and while Manchester has heavily relied on building the game from the back, Martinez would be a like a jackpot especially with the likes of De Gea, Varane and Luke Shaw around, players who love to keep the ball on ground instead of taking the route for downtown.

Tactical beast:

Martinez is a fine addition to the wobbling United defence given his keen sights and dominion in the air. As far as the numbers go, he has amassed 1.9 interceptions per game, managed to rack up an average of 2 successful tackles per game and whipped in 2.8 clearances in almost every game. He has secured a staggering 69 percent win rate in his ground tackles and 71 percent success rate in the aerial tackles despite not being 6 feet.

He is also an extremely disciplined fellow who believes in going all in for the tackles and tussles and somehow his timing is too good for the attackers to make move. Throughout the last season, he just had four yellow cards to his name wherein Harry Maguire almost made it a point to be booked unnecessarily in games on which his solitary contribution would be for the opposition.

Earlier chemistry with Erik ten Hag

It is said that the chemistry between a coach and a player is extremely important for a club and the connection between Martinez and ten Hag dates back by quite some time. The duo knows each other and Martine can also relay it to his defensive buddies that how exactly is the job done under the tutelage of the Dutch supervisor.

Given the earlier knowledge of Ten Hag, he would be able to slot Martine perfectly in the Manchester United defence that would bring the workload down for Varane and if Maguire makes the cut, then for him. Martinez runs as if there is an oxygen cylinder laced to his back and he never tires. We have seen earlier how instead of pushing in those final moments where the team trailed, somehow United chose to give up. There are so many elements that can be plugged with the arrival of Martinez.