Lisandro Martínez Scores First Goal at Old Trafford in Champions League Win
Lisandro Martínez has scored bigger goals in fiercer arenas, but this one felt different. On a cool Champions League night at Old Trafford, the Argentine finally heard his own name roar around M16 after the ball hit the Stretford End net. For a defender who lives off tackles and duels, this was a moment of pure release.
Manchester United’s 4-0 win over Azerbaijani side Sabah was routine on the scoreboard, but it carried weight. A first Champions League outing back at Old Trafford. A first clean sheet of the season in any competition. And Martínez, the snarling heartbeat of the back line, finally breaking his home duck.
Martínez’s night at last
Until this game, every one of Martínez’s United goals had come on hostile territory: at Arsenal, at Liverpool, at Fulham. Big away days, big atmospheres, big pressure. Yet Old Trafford had never seen him wheel away in celebration as a scorer.
That changed in the second half, with United already cruising.
Matheus Cunha, Bruno Fernandes and Benjamin Šeško had done the early damage, building a commanding lead that allowed United to play with a freedom rarely seen so far this season. They controlled the ball, controlled the tempo, and – crucially – controlled the space in behind.
Martínez embodied that authority. From the opening whistle he stepped into challenges with his usual ferocity, snapping into duels and setting a tone United have too often lacked. He later summed it up in one line: you go for every ball as if it’s the last. On this evidence, he meant it. United won their battles all over the pitch, and Sabah never recovered.
When his moment came, it felt like a reward for that relentlessness. A defender’s goal, yes, but a striker’s celebration. Arms wide, face lit up, Old Trafford finally his stage as a scorer, not just a stopper.
Joy in the stands, edge on the pitch
The night carried an extra layer of emotion for Martínez. Speaking to MUTV afterwards, he admitted that scoring in front of the home crowd with his girlfriend watching from the stands turned a strong European performance into something unforgettable. He called it an amazing feeling, pure joy in a “beautiful stadium” with “those people” behind him.
He didn’t hide how much the Champions League anthem still hits him either. That surge of energy when it booms out at Old Trafford is hard to contain, even for a player as combative and composed as he is. On this stage, under those lights, he looked like a man fully alive to the occasion.
By the final whistle, United had what they have been chasing all season: control, conviction, and a clean sheet to show for it. Sabah were outmatched, outmuscled and out-thought. United, for once, made it look straightforward.
From Europe to the derby
If the performance felt like a step forward, Martínez was quick to drag the focus back to what comes next. The celebrations, he insisted, could be short. A night to enjoy, then straight back to work.
Manchester City arrive at Old Trafford on Sunday. The stakes need no explanation. A Premier League derby, a test of nerve and quality, and now a chance for United to carry this ruthless edge into domestic battle.
Martínez was clear about the demand: same mentality, same focus, same hunger for every duel. Enjoy the win, then think only of the derby. Three Champions League points in the bank, a clean sheet finally on the board – but in his mind, the real fight starts again at the weekend.
If he brings this version of himself into that game, and if United match his intensity, Old Trafford might not have heard the last of that roar.
