Lisandro Martínez (born 18 January 1998) is an Argentine professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays primarily as a
centre-back
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
for
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
club
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
and the
Argentina national team.
Martínez began his career at
Newell's Old Boys
Club Atlético Newell's Old Boys () is an Argentine sports club based in Rosario, Santa Fe. The club was founded on 3 November 1903, and is named after Isaac Newell of the English county of Kent, one of the pioneers of Football in Argentina, ...
before joining
Defensa y Justicia
Club Social y Deportivo Defensa y Justicia, commonly known as Defensa y Justicia, is an Argentine football club from Florencio Varela, Buenos Aires, established in 1935. in 2017, initially on loan. He signed for
Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...
in 2019, where he made 120 appearances over three seasons and won two
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is ...
titles and one
KNVB Cup
The KNVB Beker (; en, KNVB Cup), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. O ...
. He won the
Ajax Player of the Year award in the 2021–22 season.
Martínez represented Argentina at
under-20 and
under-23 levels, before making his senior international debut in March 2019. He was a member of the Argentina squads that won the
2021 Copa América
The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to 10 July 2021. The to ...
, the
2022 Finalissima
The 2022 Finalissima ( es, Finalísima; ) will be the third edition of the CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions, a football match between the winners of the previous South American and European championships. The match will feature Italy, winners o ...
, and the
2022 FIFA World Cup
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022; it is the first Wo ...
.
Club career
Newell's Old Boys
Martínez had youth spells with Club Urquiza (Gualeguay, Entre Rios), Club Libertad (Gualeguay, Entre Rios) and
Newell's Old Boys
Club Atlético Newell's Old Boys () is an Argentine sports club based in Rosario, Santa Fe. The club was founded on 3 November 1903, and is named after Isaac Newell of the English county of Kent, one of the pioneers of Football in Argentina, ...
.
He made his professional debut for Newell's in the club's final fixture of the
2016–17 season, when he played the full match in a loss to
Godoy Cruz.
Defensa y Justicia
In August 2017, Martínez joined fellow
Argentine Primera División
The Primera División (; en, "First Division"), known officialy as Liga Profesional de Fútbol, or Torneo Binance for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in Argentina, organised by the Argentine Football Association (AFA).
T ...
side
Defensa y Justicia
Club Social y Deportivo Defensa y Justicia, commonly known as Defensa y Justicia, is an Argentine football club from Florencio Varela, Buenos Aires, established in 1935. on loan.
His first appearance for Defensa arrived on 13 October in a defeat against
San Lorenzo
San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Lorenzo, Santa Fe
* San Lorenzo Department, Chaco
* Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...
.
Two appearances later, he scored his first senior goal in an away win versus
Temperley
Temperley is a district in Greater Buenos Aires, Argentina, located in the south of Lomas de Zamora Partido.
History
In 1854 the industrial and textile merchant George Temperley (born in 1823 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England) bought from the Ma ...
.
Defensa y Justicia purchased 50% of the rights to Martínez in June 2018.
Ajax
On 17 May 2019, Defensa y Justicia announced that a deal had been agreed with
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is ...
team
Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...
; subject to the passing of a medical.
Ajax paid the Argentine side €7m for the transfer of Martínez. Ajax announced the completion of the medical on 20 May, with the transfer to go through on 1 July.
He penned a four-year contract, with the option of a further year.
He didn't officially join until July, though did feature in June friendlies with
Quick '20
Quick '20 (short for Katholieke Voetbal Vereniging Quick 1920 , Eng.: Catholic Football Club Quick 1920) is a football club from Oldenzaal, Netherlands. The club was founded in 1920 and is currently playing in the Derde Divisie
The Derde Divi ...
and
AaB.
Before Ajax signed him, they tracked his progress for two-and-a-half years.
His competitive bow came in the
2019 Johan Cruyff Shield
The 2019 Johan Cruyff Shield was the 24th edition of the Johan Cruyff Shield ( nl, Johan Cruijff Schaal), an annual Dutch football match played between the winners of the previous season's Eredivisie and KNVB Cup. The match was contested by Ajax, ...
against
PSV Eindhoven
Philips Sport Vereniging (; en, Philips Sports Association ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional football department, wh ...
, as Ajax won the trophy following a two-goal victory.
He was voted
man of the match
In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
in his second Eredivisie game; in a win over
FC Emmen
FC Emmen is a Dutch football club based in Emmen, Drenthe. They play in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football, after winning the 2021–22 Eerste Divisie title. Founded in 1925, the club entered the professional Eerste Divisie in 1985. ...
.

Martínez netted his first Ajax goal on 28 September, as he opened the scoring in a 2–0 victory over
FC Groningen
Football Club Groningen () is a Dutch professional association football club based in Groningen, province of Groningen. Founded on 16 June 1971 as the successor of GVAV, the team compete in the Eredivisie, the highest tier of Dutch football. ...
at the
Johan Cruyff Arena
The Johan Cruyff Arena ( nl, Johan Cruijff Arena ; officially stylised as Johan Cruijff ArenA) is the main stadium of the Dutch capital city of Amsterdam and the home stadium of football club AFC Ajax since its opening. Built from 1993 to 1996 ...
.
He scored again against
Utrecht
Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Nethe ...
in November, in a campaign which was ended prematurely due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
.
In his first match of
2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
, Martínez got his third Ajax goal in a home win versus
RKC Waalwijk
RKC Waalwijk () is a Dutch professional football club based in Waalwijk, that is currently competing in the Eredivisie. Its name is derived from 'Rooms Katholieke Combinatie' ('Roman Catholic Combination' in Dutch) and was established as a merg ...
on 20 September.
Manchester United
On 16 July 2022, it was announced that
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
had agreed a deal with Ajax for the signing of Martínez for a reported transfer fee between £47 million to £49 million, plus £8.5 million in add-ons. The transfer was officially completed on 27 July, when Martínez signed a five-year contract with the club. The next day, it was confirmed that he would wear the number six shirt last worn by
Paul Pogba
Paul Labile Pogba (born 15 March 1993) is a French professional footballer who plays for club Juventus and the France national team. He operates primarily as a central midfielder, but can be deployed as a left winger, attacking midfielder, ...
. On 7 August, Martínez made his club debut in a 2–1 home loss against
Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...
in the Premier League.
On 22 January 2023, Martínez scored his first goal for Manchester United in a 3–2 defeat against
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
at the
Emirates Stadium
The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. It has a current seated capacit ...
.
International career
Martínez won four caps for the
Argentina under-20 team at the
2017 South American Youth Football Championship
The 2017 South American Youth Football Championship es, ''Campeonato Sudamericano Sub-20 ''Juventud de América'' Ecuador 2017'', italic=unset, pt, ''Campeonato Sul-Americano Sub-20 ''Juventude da América'' Equador 2017'', italic=unset, region=B ...
in Ecuador.
The first came during the first stage against
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in ...
, while the other three arrived during the final stage as Argentina finished 4th and subsequently qualified for the
2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup
The 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 21st edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since its inception in 1977 ...
in South Korea.
He received a call-up for the U-20 World Cup but failed to make an appearance, appearing on the substitutes bench once versus
Guinea.
Martínez made one appearance for Argentina at
under-23 level, which was in a 5–0 friendly victory against Bolivia in September 2019.
In March 2019, Martínez received his first call-up to the
senior team.
He won his opening cap as they lost in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), an ...
to
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in ...
on 22 March.
Martínez made one appearance at the
2021 Copa América
The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to 10 July 2021. The to ...
,
which Argentina won.
He was an unused substitute in Argentina's 3–0 victory over
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
in the
2022 Finalissima
The 2022 Finalissima ( es, Finalísima; ) will be the third edition of the CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions, a football match between the winners of the previous South American and European championships. The match will feature Italy, winners o ...
,
and in the
World Cup final later that year, in which Argentina won 4–2 on penalties against title holders
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
.
Style of play
Martínez is nicknamed "''the Butcher''" due to his aggressive style of play. He is primarily a
centre-back
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
, though he is capable of playing at
left-back
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
and as a
central midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
, having played there at times for
Defensa y Justicia
Club Social y Deportivo Defensa y Justicia, commonly known as Defensa y Justicia, is an Argentine football club from Florencio Varela, Buenos Aires, established in 1935. and
Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...
.
He is a ball-playing centre-back and is known for his range of passing and composure on the ball. In the 2021–22 Eredivisie season, he averaged more passes per 90 minutes than any other player. Before signing him, Ajax's scouts characterised Martínez as a left-footed ball-playing defender who is "tough as nails" and possesses winning mentality.
Career statistics
Club
International
Honours
Ajax
*
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is ...
:
2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
,
2021–22
*
KNVB Cup
The KNVB Beker (; en, KNVB Cup), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. O ...
:
2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
*
Johan Cruyff Shield
The Johan Cruyff Shield (, ) is a football trophy in the Netherlands named after Dutch footballer Johan Cruyff, also often referred to as the Dutch Super Cup. The winner is decided in one match only, played by the winner of the national footba ...
:
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
Argentina
*
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the ' (FIFA), the ...
:
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeyp ...
*
Copa América
The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...
:
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...
*
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
The CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions, previously known officially as the European/South American Nations Cup and commonly as the Artemio Franchi Cup, is an official intercontinental football match organised by CONMEBOL and UEFA and contested ...
:
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeyp ...
Individual
*
Ajax Player of the Year (Rinus Michels Award):
2021–22
References
External links
Profileat the Manchester United F.C. website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Lisandro
1998 births
Living people
People from Gualeguay Department
Sportspeople from Entre Ríos Province
Argentine footballers
Association football defenders
Newell's Old Boys footballers
Defensa y Justicia footballers
AFC Ajax players
Manchester United F.C. players
Argentine Primera División players
Eredivisie players
Premier League players
Argentina youth international footballers
Argentina under-20 international footballers
Argentina international footballers
2021 Copa América players
2022 FIFA World Cup players
Copa América-winning players
FIFA World Cup-winning players
Argentine expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in England
Expatriate footballers in the Netherlands
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in England
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands