Manchester United clarify Lisandro Martinez situation after Argentina call-up

Manchester United have insisted that Lisandro Martinez will not feature in Argentina's March friendlies with El Salvador and Costa Rica after his confusing call-up to the national side.

The 26-year-old has been restricted to just 10 appearances for Man United this season due to injury.

Martinez made his return from a foot injury, which required two operations in 2023, against Tottenham Hotspur in the middle of January, and he then went on to start the team's next three matches with Newport County, Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United.

The centre-back suffered a knee injury in the clash with the Hammers on February 4, though, and he is not expected to be available for selection until the start of April.

Argentina named Martinez in their squad for the March friendlies with El Salvador and Costa Rica, and Man United have now provided an update on the situation.

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The Red Devils have said that the defender will "continue the final steps in his rehabilitation" alongside his international teammates, as there will be few players at Man United next week due to international call-ups.

However, the club insisted that Martinez would not be considered for selection against either El Salvador or Costa Rica amid claims that he could be involved in at least one of the fixtures.

"Lisandro Martinez is not yet ready to return from a knee injury but is joining up with the Argentina squad in the United States," read a statement on the club's official website.

"The defender will continue the final steps in his rehabilitation there but will not feature in the matches against El Salvador and Costa Rica.

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"It has been decided that Lisandro will benefit from training with his international colleagues as he regains fitness, rather than staying at Carrington, where there will be few players training next week."

Martinez initially underwent an operation in April to fix the fractured metatarsal that he suffered while facing Sevilla in the Europa League, and he was present for the start of pre-season training.

However, the South American suffered with pain in the same area in the early stages of this season, with scans revealing that the injury had not fully healed, which led to more surgery.

Martinez has therefore had a frustrating 12 months when it comes to fitness issues, but he is expected to be back on the field for Man United at the start of next month.