Lisandro Martinez Sets Off a Firestorm at United: Keane and Neville Fire Back

A 2-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday was the spark. But what really set off the debate in England wasn't the result, it was what Lisandro Martinez said afterward. The Argentine defender came out questioning the club's lack of ambition and summer transfer business, pointing directly at football director Jason Wilcox and the Manchester United hierarchy. The response didn't take long to arrive, from two names who know the Old Trafford dressing room well: Roy Keane and Gary Neville.

Keane didn't hold back. On The Overlap's Stick to Football podcast, the former captain called the club an outright "circus" and described a disorder that, in his view, runs from top to bottom.

Obviously they're not united. It's chaotic there, top to bottom. We go matchday and I don't like the feel around the club. It just seems chaotic, the statements can reflect that. It was chaotic how they landed on Michael Carrick as manager. We said from day one there were better options available, and maybe the players are seeing there are better options as players too. It's a mess, it's like a circus.Roy Keane

The context doesn't help: Martinez made these comments in the middle of United's worst league start in a season since 1986. Against that backdrop, it's no surprise his words landed like a bombshell inside the dressing room, at least according to Neville's reading of it.

"They're directly attacking their teammates"

For the former right back, the problem isn't so much the substance of the criticism as who it ends up splashing onto. Neville was blunt: if Martinez says the club should have signed more players, he's indirectly pointing the finger at the players already in the squad.

"When Martinez says they should have brought in more players, he's directly attacking his teammates," Neville explained, going further by imagining how the team's senior figures would react: "If I was Bruno Fernandes or Harry Maguire, and the other experienced players, I'd be absolutely furious with him, because he's basically saying some of us shouldn't be here and that they should have brought in more people. That's what I think he's saying."

Martinez tried to cool things down with a statement posted on Instagram on Wednesday, though that didn't stop the reactions. Keane, in fact, doesn't believe this will turn into a major rift within the squad, but he wasn't gentle either about Martinez's standing in the dressing room: "I don't think there's going to be a big fallout, because we have doubts about this dressing room anyway. I don't think there are enough personalities, enough men in there. We know that. But I don't see him as a senior Manchester United player; I see him as a center back who's making a lot of mistakes."

Neville, for his part, also questioned whether Wilcox is really the one responsible for the spending. "I thought it was really strange that he went after Jason Wilcox, not that he's beyond criticism, but Jason Wilcox doesn't set the budget; the owners set the budget," he said, before adding a detail that doesn't exactly flatter Martinez himself: "It was obvious they needed more defenders. He'd probably be one of the first out the door if they actually did bring players in."

For now, the club has not responded publicly to the Argentine's comments, though sources indicate that officials at Old Trafford are reviewing his remarks before deciding whether any disciplinary action is warranted.