THE SURPRISING PLACE LISANDRO MARTINEZ INVITED PAUL SCHOLES TO DISCUSS HIS RECENT CRITICISM
Lisandro Martinez invites Paul Scholes for a face-to-face chat after United’s 2-0 derby win. Read the full heated exchange here.
Lisandro Martinez has thrown down the gauntlet to Manchester United legends Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt, inviting them over to his place for a proper face-to-face chat. Those two, both former United stars, didn’t exactly hold back in their criticism of Martinez ahead of his showdown with Erling Haaland. But after keeping Haaland quiet and helping United pull off a shock win over City, Martinez couldn’t resist a little jab: “No one says anything to your face,” he pointed out.
United stunned City at Old Trafford—nobody saw that coming. Martinez, fresh off his World Cup win, gave Scholes and Butt the chance to discuss things in person after making them eat their words with his performance. United, with Michael Carrick in temporary charge, turned in their most complete display of the season, shutting down Haaland and his partners and winning 2-0 (with three more goals ruled out for offside).
Before that match, Scholes and Butt were chatting on "The Good, The Bad & The Football" podcast. Butt joked that Haaland would “pick Martinez up and run with him” because of his size. Scholes went even further, saying City’s big No. 9 would “throw” the 5 ft 9 in Martinez “in the net” while adding to his incredible goal tally in 2025-26.
Didn’t happen. Martinez isn’t the type to back down from a physical battle. He’s not too fussed by what Scholes or Butt say, even with their reputations at Old Trafford. The 28-year-old prefers to let his game do the talking.
When reporters asked Martinez about those pre-match digs, he shot back, starting with Scholes: “Honestly, he can say whatever he wants. I told him already that if he wants to say something to me, he can come wherever he wants. To my house, wherever. I don’t care.
“And for me, I respect when they want to help the club, but it’s easy to talk on TV. When you see them face-to-face, nobody says a word. So I don’t really care what they say. I just focus on my performance and the team’s performance, and I give everything for this club until my last day.”
Scholes didn’t take long to respond after those comments started making the rounds online. He posted on Instagram: “Someone’s had a good game. Was really happy for you... Tea, no sugar, please.”
This season’s been rough for United, and Martinez had to wait until November 30 to make his first appearance after recovering from a serious ACL injury. The club already parted ways with Ruben Amorim after a string of poor results. With early exits from the FA Cup and Carabao Cup, United are playing fewer matches than they have since before World War I.
Still, the win over City showed real fight, and Martinez believes the team can turn things around. He talked about rebuilding trust with the fans: “It’s about the connection. It’s about how we represent them on the pitch. If they see us fighting like that, they’re with us.
“Sometimes our performance isn’t the best, but they expect a good attitude from us—tackles, that Manchester United DNA, the blood. And I get it, because sometimes even we’re asking ourselves, ‘What are we doing here?’”
United’s win over City puts them right back in the hunt for the Premier League’s top four, just a point away. Champions League football next season is a must after missing out on Europe entirely this year. They’re still in the mix, planning to bring in a new permanent manager over the summer, but the next test is a big one: a trip to the Emirates to face league leaders Arsenal. Martinez, who sometimes wears the captain’s armband, will be out to lead by example again.
WHY NO FINE? DISCOVER WHY THE GREEK COURT SCRAPPED MAGUIRE'S FINANCIAL PENALTY THIS WEEK
Harry Maguire’s retrial is over! Read about the 15-month suspended sentence, the Supreme Court appeal, and the Mykonos backstory.
Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has been found guilty of non-serious assault in Greece and given a 15-month suspended jail sentence, down from the original 21 months after a retrial. This all goes back to 2020, when police arrested him while he was on holiday in Mykonos with family and friends.
The legal process dragged on for years. Maguire’s retrial finally happened on Wednesday, after four delays. He’s still fighting accusations of aggravated assault, resisting arrest, and attempted bribery from that night. Greek law meant his conviction got quashed automatically on appeal, so that’s why there was a retrial. Maguire skipped the hearing; he was busy preparing for United’s game against Newcastle. On top of the shorter sentence, he doesn’t have to pay a fine anymore.
All this started in the summer break between the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons, just a year after Maguire joined United for a then-record £80 million. He was the club captain and a regular for England.
Right after his arrest, Maguire told the BBC how he thought he was getting kidnapped. He said plain-clothes police pulled over his group’s minibus, yanked him off, hit him on the legs, and shouted that his career was finished. “They hit me a lot on the legs. It wasn’t on my mind. I was in that much of a panic. Fear. Scared for my life,” he said. Maguire tried to run off with one handcuff still on, not knowing who these men were. He also said, “I don’t feel I owe an apology to anybody. An apology is something you do when you have done something wrong. I don’t wish it on anybody. Obviously, the situation has made it difficult for one of the biggest clubs in the world, so I regret putting the fans and the club through this, but I did nothing wrong. I found myself in a situation where it could have happened to anybody, anywhere.”
That first trial in 2020 caught him off guard. “It was horrible. It was such a quick turnaround; it was incredible. We got the pages for the transcript for the court the evening before. A big document, all in Greek. I hardly had any chance to speak to my lawyer. We were confident the case would be adjourned to give us more time to prepare and get the witnesses and the evidence that we have. For it all happened so quickly... we obviously didn’t expect the trial to go ahead,” he said.
Now, just ahead of his 33rd birthday, Maguire still refuses to settle the case with money. He wants to clear his name in court. He plans to appeal to the Supreme Court if he wins and the judgment gets thrown out.
CONTRACTUAL LIFELINE: UNEARTHING THE STRATEGY BEHIND ANDRE ONANA’S RETURN FROM TURKISH LOAN SPELL
Onana vs Lammens: Get the latest on the £44M keeper’s return from Turkey and why Michael Carrick values "reliability over chaos."
Andre Onana isn’t giving up on his Manchester United career, even with his replacement grabbing the spotlight while he’s away on loan. Right now, Onana’s spending the 2025/26 season with Trabzonspor in Turkey, while Senne Lammens has stepped up as United’s new first-choice keeper.
United signed Lammens from Royal Antwerp for £18 million on deadline day last September, and soon after, Onana was shipped out on loan. There’s no option for Trabzonspor to buy him, so Onana will be back at United this summer. He’s already played 72 games for the club.
Onana has turned out 20 times for Trabzonspor, but honestly, United probably aren’t paying much attention. Lammens has looked rock-solid in goal, holding down the spot for 21 straight matches, no matter if Amorim, Darren Fletcher, or Michael Carrick was in charge.
So far, Lammens has five clean sheets and is anchoring a defence that’s clearly improving under Carrick. Altay Bayindir is backing him up, and Tom Heaton is still kicking around in the goalkeeping group.
When United first bought Onana for £44 million from Inter Milan, he was reuniting with Erik ten Hag, his old Ajax boss. He’s still got two years left on his contract. According to Geremi Onana’s friend and a former Cameroon and Chelsea player, Onana hasn’t lost hope of turning things around.
“Listen, I know Andre very well, and there were a lot of issues at United during his time there,” Geremi told Telecom Asia. “It wasn’t all on him. But with Michael Carrick coming in, things are looking up for everyone, including Andre.
“He’s got real talent, and players like him don’t come around often. The next step is for him to go back and fight for his spot. Andre always rises to a challenge. Give him a fair shot, and he’ll show you what he can do.”
We’ll find out what’s next for Onana this summer. United are planning big changes, including a new permanent manager. Carrick is one of the names in the running.
If Carrick gets the job, Onana’s chances might take a hit, since the interim boss is thrilled with Lammens. After Lammens’ man-of-the-match showing in the 1-0 win over Everton, Carrick said, “For me, a keeper needs to be reliable, someone who calms things down, not adds to the chaos. Senne does exactly that.
“He’s quiet and maybe a bit unassuming, but he’s got real steel in him. Stepping in as United’s keeper is a big ask, and not everyone handles it. Sometimes it takes a while to settle, sometimes not. The way he’s handled it so far, he’s calm and composed, and that’s made a huge difference for the defence.”