Lisandro Martinez put in a solid display on Sunday when he made his debut in front of Manchester United fans at Old Trafford.
We could see the signs of a sharp and aggressive defender, who isn’t afraid to excite the crowd with crunching tackles.
Martinez won 100% of his tackles, had a 100% final third pass accuracy, a 96% pass accuracy, won possession five times and produced one clearance and block.
Moreover, the Manchester Evening News gave Martinez a performance rating of 7/10 after facing Rayo Vallecano, writing: “Enjoyed his duel with fellow South American Falcao and settled into the game to produce a performance that could oust Victor Lindelof.”
Martinez will be hoping to make his Premier League debut on Sunday against Brighton.
Speaking about Martinez’s debut for United after playing behind him in the 1-1 draw against Rayo Vallecano, Heaton told MUTV: “I really enjoyed playing with him today, I think he’ll be a top, top player for the club.
“As I say, I thought he was outstanding today and I’m looking forward to watching him this season. For what he brings, physicality, how he uses his body, what he gives you in terms of mobility and on the ball and personality-wise, I think he’s going to add a lot to the team.
“You can see already what he brings. He brings that sort of larger-than-life personality at the back, controlling. I look forward to hopefully playing with him more this year.”
Prior to the friendly match against Rayo Vallecano, Martinez played 45 minutes in a behind-closed-doors match with fifth-tier side Wrexham, so it’s clear he is building up his fitness ahead of the new season.
SN verdict
We suspect that Martinez will partner Harry Maguire at the back this season.
Raphael Varane still needs to gain full fitness and avoid more injuries if he is to have any chance of becoming a regular at United this season.
Martinez brings a new aggression to the side and we’ve needed that for some time