‘The more I look at it… it gets better’: Rio Ferdinand expresses his excitement over Man United’s impending signing of Lisandro Martinez, hailing the defender as a ‘leader’ and highlighting the £46m man’s ‘character’
- Lisandro Martinez has left for the UK to complete his move to Manchester United
- The defender will sign for £46m and reunite with former Ajax boss Erik ten Haag
- Rio Ferdinand gave a positive assessment of the arrival of the Red Devils
By Daniel Davies for Mailonline
Posted: 07:30, 16 Jul 2022 | Updated: 08:42, 16 July 2022
Rio Ferdinand has praised upcoming Manchester United signing Lisandro Martinez, admitting his rating “improves” with everything he hears about him.
The Ajax defender flew to the UK after boarding a plane last night and is expected to complete the formalities before officially completing his move to Old Trafford.
Sportsmail revealed earlier this week that the Red Devils have successfully agreed the structure of the deal, with the transfer worth around £46m in total.
Rio Ferdinand has expressed his excitement over Man United’s upcoming signing Lisandro Martinez
Former United defender Ferdinand praises £46m centre-back’s ‘character’
Martinez has previously played under United boss Erik ten Hag, having been an integral part of his defense during their trophy-laden time together in Amsterdam.
United supporters are struggling to hide their excitement at the impending arrival and Ferdinand has also been left with a positive impression of the 24-year-old.
“The more I look into it and the vibes and the stories I hear and the mutterings from different people — it gets better,” Ferdinand said on Vibe with Five.
Martinez was pictured traveling to the UK last night with a representative to seal the deal
“I listened to an interview with Jurien Timber, the young player United wanted to sign, centre-back Martinez played alongside him at Ajax.
“He said, ‘When I’m not on my game and I’m a little out of focus, Martinez is always yelling at me, always swearing at me in his language and making me go.’
“I’ve been shouting about the character element for a long time and from what I hear from different people, Timber being one of them, is that he has character.
“He’s a leader.” He [makes] other people’s demands, and he’s a guy who wants to get physical and very aggressive, but who can also play.
The versatile centre-back will be reunited with Erik ten Hag (right) after their time at Ajax
Martinez was photographed on social media with his representative Christian Bragarnik on a flight to the home of his new club, with the caption: “Rumbo a Manchester @lisandromartinez”. Translated into English, this reads “Heading for Manchester”.
The versatile defender missed training on Thursday as both clubs worked hard to iron out the specific structure of his transfer – which is almost complete.
However, he has his critics as his lack of height could be a problem for United.
Martinez took a step closer to Old Trafford after the clubs finally reached an agreement
Ferdinand admitted he was concerned about his 5’9′ frame, which means Martinez is much smaller than most centre-backs in the Premier League.
“If you’re going to ask if there are any question marks about him, I think it would be his height and his pace would be the only two,” Ferdinand added.
Martinez will become United’s third arrival after Tyrrell Malacia and Christian Eriksen.
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