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Lisandro Martinez breaks silence on rivalry with Erling Haaland ahead of Manchester derby
Sep 12 2026 14:47 · By onefootball.com · 1 Reads
Lisandro Martinez has addressed his rivalry with Erling Haaland before Sunday’s Manchester derby, saying the past counts for little as Manchester United host Manchester City at Old Trafford. According to Goal.com, he stressed he must be ready for a different game.
United have started slowly in the league but arrive on the back of a 4-0 Champions League win over Sabah on Thursday. The derby will again set Martinez against Haaland.
Haaland scored a hat-trick on Martinez’s derby debut, but has not found the net in the five meetings since involving the Argentine. Martinez impressed in January’s 2-0 win, easing doubts over his handling of City’s striker.
Martinez played down that record, saying wins lift confidence but United must stay calm and quickly refocus on the derby. City will have had 48 hours more rest, yet he called the cadence normal for top players and said recovery is key.
He also scored against Sabah, though he underlined that defending comes first and that three points matter more than goals. United face a major test, and a positive result could lift their campaign, with his duel with Haaland likely to be influential.
Source: Goal.com
“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”