Lisandro Martinez lay-off is necessary for Manchester United to see the best of him again

Erik ten Hag wants all of his signings at Manchester United to share one particular trait: personality.

Ten Hag knew the importance of adding characters to the dressing room when he was appointed at Old Trafford last year and Lisandro Martinez, who was the third signing of the Dutchman's tenure, has personality in abundance.

Martinez earned the nickname 'The Butcher' during his time in Amsterdam and it didn't take long for supporters to embrace him in Manchester, with Argentina flags being seen on most United away days last season.

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The defender is a typical fiery South American on the pitch and his passion is infectious. His teammates love going to war alongside him and he was firmly in the conversation for standout performer of the campaign last term.

Martinez was absent in the latter stage of last season due to a fractured metatarsal and it was hoped he would pick up where he left off in 2023/24, but he's struggled to operate at his optimum levels over the last few weeks and could now be sidelined until 2024.

Martinez is due to undergo a second surgery on the metatarsal he fractured during a Europa League game against Sevilla last year after requiring painkillers to play in the defeats by Bayern Munich and Brighton last month.

"We did a proper diagnosis - in Argentina as well - but now it came out that there was a problem and that's very sad for him and the team, because he was not 100 per cent fit," Ten Hag said prior to the weekend.

"I think it was a big difference: the Licha Martinez in the last games and the Licha Martinez we have seen in the first season here at Manchester United. He will add to the team, he's a really