David de Gea shows his true colours with public response to Man Utd injury blow

Lisandro Martinez is set to be out for considerable amount of time after suffering a foot injury and David de Gea has sent a heartfelt message to his former Manchester United colleague

Man Utd train ahead of Galatasaray

David de Gea has sent his support to ex-Manchester United team-mate Lisandro Martinez after it was confirmed the defender required surgery for an ongoing foot problem.

Martinez is now set to be ruled out for the foreseeable future after suffering a reoccurrence of the foot issue that kept him out for the back end of last season. The 25-year-old sustained the injury during the second half of their Europa League first-leg tie against Sevilla in April.

Martinez ended up missing United’s final 12 matches of the season, including the FA Cup final defeat against Manchester City. He sat out of nine Premier League games in total and proved a major miss for the Red Devils, though Victor Lindelof stepped in and impressed.

He returned to the fold in pre-season and started the opening five league matches, before missing the trip Burnley through injury. And then ahead of the Champions League game against Galatasaray, Ten Hag announced that Martinez needed an operation which is expected to see him out of action until 2024.

Following that news, De Gea posted on his Instagram with a heartfelt three-word message to the Argentine. He said: “Stay strong warrior,” alongside a photo of the pair following a game last season.

In his pre-Galatasaray press conference, Ten Hag said of Martinez: “I can confirm, yeah. Licha Martinez will have to undergo surgery.” Martinez has been a crucial cog for United since he joined the club from Ajax in July 2022, making 51 appearances across all competitions.

Lisandro Martinez and David de Gea(Getty Images)

Ten Hag was also asked about the centre-back on Friday after news emerged he would be out for a long time. “That’s really sad, disappointing news. He has to go through the same process and I’m really sorry for him,” the Dutchman said.

“The squad will miss him. As you know, we have more injuries, so we always have to deal with it as a squad. As a club, we have to deal with injuries. He has to be strong. He will fight back, I’m sure. He is a character.

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“There is still a long season ahead and he will be fit. We have to do our job, to get ourselves in the right position, so he can contribute, and add quality, when he returns.”

As for De Gea, he is still without a club after leaving United in the summer. The Spaniard spent 12 years at Old Trafford, but departed at the end of his contract in July. Andre Onana has since replaced him as United’s first-choice goalkeeper, though the United squad were furious with the way De Gea was treated upon his departure.

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