Manchester United defender out for eight weeks with injury

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Manchester United’s defender Lisandro Martinez will remain sidelined until at least April due to knee ligament damage sustained during his team’s 3-0 victory over West Ham on Sunday.

Martinez attempted to block Hammers defender Vladimir Coufal from getting the ball in the second half, but he hobbled off.

After missing more than three months due to a foot ailment, the 26-year-old was participating in just his third league game.

The club said he “is expected to be out of action for at least eight weeks”.

However he will not require surgery.

“We all wish Licha a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him back on the pitch later in the season,” a club statement added.

After United’s triumph on Sunday, manager Erik ten Hag stated that Martinez’s injury “doesn’t look good” and called it a “personal disaster”.

Martinez fractured his metatarsal in April and experienced “an aggravation” of the injury at the start of the 2022–2023 season, which prevented him from playing in the final stages of the season.

His foot injury kept him out of 22 games overall until he returned on January 14 against Tottenham.