Manchester United's disastrous run of form continued as Atletico Madrid handed the Red Devils a 2-0 defeat in the Champions League .
With this loss, Michael Carrick has only two wins so far this season with every result just adding on to the pressure on the United boss early this season.
At the Riyadh Air Metropolitano, United went down in the first minute itself after a goal from Pablo Barrios.
United's hopes of a comeback were damaged in the 74th minute when Leny Yoro was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Jonathan David. Atletico then capitalized on the advantage and sealed the victory in the 79th minute via a goal from Ademola Lookman.
Michael Carrick, Manager of Manchester United.Denis Doyle / Getty Images
Post the match, defender Lisandro Martinez made his feelings clear on the poor results and even went on to criticize the United technical director Jason Wilcox.
In an interview with Amazon after the loss against Atletico, Martinez pointed at last season's third place finish under Carrick that should have encouraged the board to invest more in the summer.
"We had a fantastic season last season and now we expect more from the top," he said.
The Argentinian also directly called out the club's technical director for not backing Carrick despite delivering last season. Jason Wilcox is the current United director of football and the 55-year-old has been criticized in the past over a lack of signings in critical positions the side were lacking in.
"I expected more from our technical director…I don't think Carrick was backed. He did his best. If you don't change, next season it's a big problem.
"You keep changing managers but what about other areas? It's easy to say the coach, the players, but also we have to see others," Martinez said.
During the summer transfer window, United spent $207.2 million focusing on strengthening the midfield. Youri Tielemans, Andrey Santos, and Carlos Baleba were the biggest signings under Carrick. However, despite the new additions, questions remained over whether the club also needed fullbacks, a center back, and a proven striker.
United are now on a five match winless streak in all competitions and Michael Carrick desperately needs a win to secure his future.
This story was originally published by Athlon on Oct 13, 2026, where it first appeared in the Soccer section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
