Erik Ten Hag calls Lisandro Martinez a ‘warrior’ after Arsenal missed out on him

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Erik Ten Hag’s Manchester United completed the signing of Lisandro Martinez after Arsenal refused to match the Red Devils’ mammoth offer to Ajax.

The Gunners were the first side reported to be interested in the Argentine. Mikel Arteta and Edu went into the market looking for a new left-sided defender, and Martinez checked all the boxes.

The Ajax star can play at left-back, left centre-half and also in defensive midfield. That sort of versatility is hard to find in the modern game, and that’s probably why Manchester United went above and beyond to get the deal done.

Everybody knows that Martinez is a good player, but who better to tell us about him than the man who managed him for the last three years – Ten Hag.

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Erik Ten Hag calls Lisandro Martinez a ‘warrior’ after Arsenal missed out on him

After the move was confirmed, Fabrizio Romano revealed that Manchester United will pay Ajax a guaranteed fee of £55 million plus an additional £8.5 million in potential add-ons.

Ten Hag is delighted that his side has brought him in, and the Dutchman went on to brand Martinez as a ‘warrior’.

The Manchester United manager told Sky Sports: “Martinez is a different type. He’s a warrior, he brings aggressiveness but he can also play football.

“He has a good left foot. That’s also what you need in the balance of the team. You need players who can create and also players who can defend.”

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Missing out on Martinez was viewed as a big blow by some Arsenal fans. The Argentine is a fantastic player and signing him would’ve solved three different issues for Arteta.

However, £55 million really does seem a bit over-the-top for a player who has never played in one of the top five leagues in Europe. Arsenal were arguably right to pull out of the deal, but only time will tell if that will come back to haunt them.

Arsenal turned their attention to Oleksandr Zinchenko after they pulled out of the deal for Martinez. The Manchester City star, like the Argentine, is hugely versatile. He knows the Premier League really well too, and he’s set to cost way lesser than that what Ten Hag’s side paid for the Ajax man.

Zinchenko is reportedly set for a medical this week and Arsenal may have just got the better deal here.

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