Man United player ratings: 1/10 Lisandro Martinez must make public apology after unforgivable act of self-sabotage

Lisandro Martinez was the first Manchester United player to break ranks on the club’s shambolic hierarchy. But at Stamford Bridge the hot-headed defender basically turned the gun on himself as United ’s horror season took another negative turn , leaving Michael Carrick’s position hanging even more in the balance. Martinez’s embarrassing afternoon Martinez’s brainless decision to lead with his arm when trying to defend a cross and catching Wesley Fofana in the face was an unforgivable act of self-sabotage. It is no secret Martinez wants out of United, and he should be made an example of now, not that their squad is exactly packed full of players to take his place after the board negligently opted against reinforcing that area of the squad in the summer. Martinez had already been left embarrassed after allowing Morgan Rogers to waltz past him and dink the opening goal deftly over Senne Lammens as the United defence parted like the Red Sea. Having been shown a second yellow card for his moment of madness the man affectionately known as ‘The Butcher’ by United fans completely lost his head and had to be escorted off the pitch by his teammates. It was exactly the type of scene Carrick did not need at the start of a week that will surely break his career in the Old Trafford dugout. Cole Palmer was never going to miss the penalty and at 2-0 down with ten men, United were never going to mount any kind of comeback. The irony for Carrick is that his side were the more confident and cohesive team in the first half, producing arguably their best 45 minutes of a campaign that is unravelling at an alarming rate. Carrick and Fernandes make amends As expected, Carrick restored captain Bruno Fernandes to his starting 11 after they kissed and made up. Fernandes was serenaded with chants of ‘Bruno, Bruno’ by the travelling fans during the pre-match warm-ups. The Portuguese went about his task like he had a point to prove and bridges to build, leading the press that he had publicly complained was non-existent in the wake of the 4-1 drubbing at Como. He was also noticeably less theatrical than usual, getting straight back to his feet after being brought down by what he thought was a foul and encouraging rather than lambasting Amad Diallo when he opted to shoot rather than square the ball back to his skipper, who was in a better position. Fernandes did balloon one glorious opportunity into the Matthew Harding stand after a rapid Red Devils counter-attack. He then whipped a delicious ball across the six-yard box which narrowly evaded Bryan Mbuemo at the far post before playing in Amad with a sumptuous ball around the corner. The only issue for Carrick, who interestingly did not appear on the edge of his technical area for the first 15 minutes of the contest, is that Amad has not scored since December and could not keep his shot down. United fans make their feelings clear once again Nonetheless the travelling hordes were clearly buoyed by a much-improved performance from their team and did not pass up the opportunity to make it clear who they blamed for the mess their beloved club are in. ‘You can stick your new stadium up your arse’ and ‘sell United f*ck off home’ were just two of the songs they serenaded Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazers with. Sporting director Jason Wilcox also did not escape their ire, while Carrick himself was once again serenaded positively. Carrick sent his players out early for the second half, presumably on the back of words of encouragement over what he had witnessed. However, there was always a suspicion they would pay for those spurned opportunities and so it proved as Chelsea scored twice in 14 minutes to win the game. By the end of the game that extended United’s winless run to nine games, the home fans were taunting Carrick with cries of ‘we want you to stay.’ The end for Carrick? The United boss surely needs positive results at home to Roma in the Champions League on Tuesday and when Aston Villa visit in the league next Sunday or you fear his position becomes untenable. But it is Martinez who should be making another grovelling public apology for letting his manager, teammates and the fans down. Win £10,000 Tax-Free Cash End 2026 with a nice little boost How would £10,000 change your week? We’ve got a guaranteed winner next Friday, and it could be you walking away with £10,000 tax-free cash ! Use code EARLY at talksportwin.com to grab 50 per cent off all your entries before midnight Sunday Enter now for your chance to win. The competition closes on Friday, November 6 at 3pm.