Lisandro Martinez provides huge fitness update ahead of January return

Manchester United centre-back Lisandro Martinez has left fans drooling with a hugely positive update on his return from injury.

The battling defender has not featured since suffering a foot injury but is closing in on his comeback, with manager Erik ten Hag recently revealing he expects to be able to call on Martinez towards the middle of January.

To further build the excitement for Martinez's return, he sat down with club media to offer an insight into his current condition.

"Well, I am really good, I am really good, honestly," he gleefully proclaimed.

"My rehab is going amazingly, in the way that I want, I am feeling strong, doing everything right with Ibra [Ibrahim Kerem] the physio, he has been amazing. And also the medical department, they take care of me from day one so it was really important. Yeah, all is perfect for me."

Despite his desire to return as soon as possible, Martinez acknowledged the importance of being cautious to avoid doing any further damage.

"Definitely, we need to be patient, we need to be patient," he said. "I know that I will be back soon, very soon. It takes time, we need to be patient."

Having missed the end of last season with a similar injury, Martinez confessed he has struggled spending so long on the sidelines but explained how he has used his time away from the pitch to better himself.

"It is tough, so tough, especially when you had two injuries, almost six or seven months, it is really, really tough," the Man Utd defender revealed. "But I feel strong from my mind. I get really good values from my family, to never give up, so this has only made me even stronger. It is tough, so tough, but there are no excuses.

"It is part of football also and we need to accept it, be humble. It is a time to work even harder, in the gym, improving, doing analysis, doing tactics, in the things that we can improve on the pitch.

"As a person as well, I love to improve that part because, for everybody, if you improve then automatically you will see it on the pitch.

"I love this club and I love this place. I feel so grateful to be here every day and I love to spend time with physios, the kit men, with my teammates, with everybody. I also like to talk with everybody, to listen, to improve. Because I think you can bring a lot of things from everybody.

"It doesn't mean that you have to be only a footballer. That is really good and also I spent time with my family in Argentina. It was really important for me to get that love from my family. I love my family as well, so it was really important for me."

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