Manchester United look to have steadied the ship over the last week or so, following up their victory over Liverpool on Monday night with a win at Southampton on Saturday afternoon.
It was not the most dominant performances from Erik ten Hag's side, with chances arriving for both teams over the course of the 90 minutes. However, an excellent team move finished off by Bruno Fernandes proved to be the difference between the sides as the visitors emerged as 1-0 winners.
The club's supporters will be hoping that those two results can help the team put their poor start to the season behind them. With the manager also making some big personnel changes and new signings arriving, the expectation will be that the upcoming campaign does not turn out to be the disaster that it once looked like it could be.
Graeme Souness critical of Lisandro Martinez & Erik ten Hag
However, not all see the last two results as proof of some sort of renaissance at Manchester United.
Lisandro Martinez performed to a decent level in those fixtures, although he did struggle badly against both Brighton and Brentford. His lack of height was labelled as a concern by many after those losses, something Graeme Souness still believes will be his undoing.
Speaking on talkSPORT, the former Liverpool midfielder admitted that he as been far from impressed with what he has seen from the Argentine defender so far.
👎 “I think Martinez will be sorely tested and be found out in the PL.”
❌ “He’s not special at anything!”
🤦♂️ “Martinez goes to ground too readily, the clever defenders stay on their feet.”
Graeme Souness says #MUFC’s “vertically challenged” Martinez will fail in the PL. pic.twitter.com/jSjkWCmQJ2— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) August 29, 2022
He's vertically challenged. I was racking my mind to come up with anyone who has played in the Premier League or First Division at that size and been a success.
I think that he will get sorely tested and be found out moving forward...
He's not particularly special at anything, he's feisty and aggressive. The other thing I don't like about him is that he goes to ground too readily, that's not a good sign for a defender.
The best defenders, the clever ones, stay on their feet and are reading it. They're there and they're anticipating. If you're lunging it means you're not reading it.
I come back to his size. He will get found out in the Premier League...
I can't tell you anyone that size that has been a success in our game. I think ultimately he will get found out.
Martinez is certainly an aggressive defender and it will be interesting to see how he copes in the Premier League in the long-term.
Erik ten Hag does seem to now be sculpting the team in his image. Removing Harry Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo from the team has allowed them to play with more energy, while Ajax winger Antony is also set to sign in a deal worth up to €100million.
It will take time for the team to adjust to his demands, but despite the two recent wins, Souness is not convinced by what he has seen from Manchester United this season.
😡 “They scraped through vs #LFC & scraped through vs Southampton!”
🤷♂️ “Utd had 30% of the ball v Liverpool, can you be great without the ball!?”
🤩 “United have a tradition of being one of the best teams to watch!”
Graeme Souness is not impressed with #MUFC under Ten Hag! ❌ pic.twitter.com/3R5Ld7lSg1— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) August 29, 2022
What do you mean surely he's doing it right?
They scraped through against Liverpool, they scraped through against Southampton. It's Man United, spending £240million...
All the experts said Man United were great against Liverpool. They had 30 per cent of the ball against Liverpool, how can you be great without the ball? That means for 70 per cent of the game they were great without the ball, sorry?
Have they played the type of football and been exciting? Man United have a tradition of being one of the best teams to watch.
Manchester United will travel to take on Leicester City on Thursday night, before hosting table toppers Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.
It will be interesting to see how their recent form translates to those fixtures.
SEE ALSO: European Club's Manager Threatens To Walk If They Sign Cristiano Ronaldo
