Manchester United star to have second surgery after setback following return from injury - Reports

Manchester United's star defender Lisandro Martinez is slated for a second surgery on his fifth metatarsal, according to new reports from The Daily Mail. The operation is scheduled for Monday (2 October) following a recurrence of the issue that initially sidelined him at the tail end of last season.

The club confirmed on Friday that the Argentine international could be out for up to another three months, dealing a major blow to their campaign. The 25-year-old center-back originally suffered the foot injury during a Europa League match against Sevilla last April.

After an 11-week hiatus, Martinez attempted to hasten his return to full fitness by participating in Manchester United's pre-season tour in America. His eagerness seemed to pay off as he featured in the first four Premier League games of the current season.

However, the ailment resurfaced during a recent loss to Arsenal, compelling him to exit the match in the second half at the Emirates Stadium.

According to the reports, Martinez had been resorting to painkillers to continue playing in subsequent matches against Brighton and Bayern Munich. Comprehensive medical evaluations carried out on Thursday revealed that the fracture had failed to heal properly.

This grim diagnosis mandates additional surgical intervention, which aims to rectify the problem permanently. Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag expressed his dismay over the injury while speaking to reporters ahead of the weekend's games. He said (via Daily Mail):

"We did a proper diagnosis in Argentina as well, but now it came out that there was a problem. That's very sad, for him and the team, because he was not 100 percent fit."

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Mark Goldbridge slams Manchester United's lack of identity with scathing remarks

In the aftermath of a weekend that saw both Liverpool and Manchester United fall to defeats, Mark Goldbridge unleashed a blistering critique of his own team. Goldbridge agreed with a fan's assertion that a nine-man Liverpool squad is superior to a full-strength United.

Liverpool faced a 2-1 loss against Tottenham Hotspur, a game filled with VAR controversies, while United suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace. The Reds saw two players, Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota, sent off during their game against Tottenham.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, Jurgen Klopp's side fought, nearly holding Spurs to a draw until a late own-goal from Joel Matip secured all three points for Tottenham. On the other hand, United failed to score at home against Crystal Palace, a team they had previously knocked out of the Carabao Cup during midweek.

Speaking candidly about the weekend's fixtures, Goldbridge stated (via Sport Bible):

"There's a lot of teams better than United, but it's a big statement to say that Liverpool with nine men are better than United with 11. But it is true, United don't have an identity, they don't have players that want to play football and they don't really seem to know how to do it."

He went on to state that the blame wasn't on manager Erik ten Hag, but rather on the players, who he argued were uncoachable by the trio of Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola, and Roberto De Zerbi.