Lisandro Martinez's explosive outburst in the aftermath of Man Utd's defeat in Madrid on Tuesday has placed the focus firmly on director of football Jason Wilcox and the club's hierarchy. Following the 2-0 loss to Atletico, Martinez criticised the lack of summer investment in the squad, adding that he expected more from "upstairs". Here, Sky Sports News reporters Rob Dorsett and Kaveh Solhekol answer all your questions on the situation.
Is Jason Wilcox's position under threat? Sky Sports News football correspondent Rob Dorsett: "Jason Wilcox retains the full support of his Manchester United bosses, despite the personal criticism directed at him by Lisandro Martinez. "The defender's comments reflect the frustrations of some significant sections of the Manchester United fan base, but it is clear that Wilcox is working to a carefully planned transfer strategy that has been sanctioned by the chief executive, Omar Berrada, and the club's co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
While Wilcox is being criticised by groups of supporters and Martinez, his bosses are satisfied with the job he is doing. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player "United's hierarchy is determined to stick to their strict spending plans, and will not repeat what they feel are mistakes of the past, where players who weren't key parts of the first team remained stuck on lucrative long contracts. The club's current financial situation dictates that it will take several transfer windows to overhaul the squad fully, and that is the project Wilcox is overseeing.
"The plan is based on much of the intelligence collated by the club's director of data and AI, Michael Sansoni. That data suggested two seasons ago that the best way for United to improve their immediate results was to score more goals - as a bigger priority than the need to concede fewer goals. "That is why the focus of the 2025 summer transfer window was on strengthening attacking positions - in came Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha.
In this summer's window, the focus switched to midfield, and United spent £158m on three central midfielders in Carlos Baleba, Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans. All three of those players started the Champions League match in Madrid. "United fans feel strongly that they are lacking a top-quality striker with more experience and a better goalscoring return than Sesko, and also that there has been a long-standing need to strengthen at left-back, with Luke Shaw the only recognised senior left-footed full-back.
But United sources insist they simply don't have the resources to solve all of the squad weaknesses in one window. Despite record revenues of £678m in 2025/26, they also made a pre-tax loss of £47m. "It is clear that the next two transfer windows will focus on strengthening United's defence, where Martinez's future will also be considered." Who do you think Martinez's comments were directed at? [Chris] "Well, they were clearly directed at, very personally, the director of football Jason Wilcox.
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