The Premier League have issued an explanation after Lisandro Martinez was sent off on his injury return in Manchester United’s clash with Leeds United at Old Trafford on Monday night.
The Argentine defender was dismissed for violent conduct after pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair while going up for a header, marking a second Premier League game in a row in which United have had a player sent off.
In March’s 2-2 draw with Bournemouth, Harry Maguire was also shown a straight red card when he desperately grabbed Evanilson late in the second half, conceding a penalty for the hosts’ second goal.
Martinez missed United’s last five league games with a calf injury prior to his return on Monday, where he started alongside fellow centre-back Leny Yoro.
Premier League Explain Martinez’s Red Card
Premier League Match Centre issued an explanation following Martinez’s second-half red card, saying VAR confirmed the Argentine was guilty of violent conduct.
This aligned with referee Paul Tierney’s on-field decision, who said: “Manchester United’s six is guilty of pulling his hair, violent conduct, final decisions is a red card.”
But a new left-winger is also expected to be on the agenda for the window, with Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho set to depart permanently, and Yan Diomande seemingly out of the club’s price range.
Man Utd Eyeing Shock Moussa Diaby Deal
REUTERS/Stringer
Diaby, who joined Al-Ittihad from Aston Villa in a £52m deal in 2024, has enjoyed a fine spell in Saudi Arabia since leaving, and is now attracting interest from a number of clubs in Europe about a return to the continent.
The France international currently earns £385,000-a-week in the Middle East, and it’s reported by MediaFoot that Manchester United are among the clubs showing an interest in a deal to bring him back.
Diaby enjoyed a fine spell in the Premier League previously while with Aston Villa, scoring ten goals and registering nine assists in 54 appearances for the club across all competitions.
The 26-year-old is understood to be open to a move back to Europe, and Al-Ittihad are open to allowing him to return, but they are yet to set an asking price to start negotiations with.
AC Milan have already made contact with his representatives over a potential move to Italy, while Inter are also keen on a deal. Man Utd’s interest is not as advanced, but it is genuine, and they could look to make a move if interest in other targets fails to materialise into anything.
Diaby Would Be an Odd Man Utd Signing
While Diaby enjoyed a fine spell in the Premier League with Aston Villa, and has done a tremendous job in the Saudi Pro League with Al-Ittihad, netting 11 goals and registering 31 assists in 71 appearances.
He is still at the peak of his powers too, at just 26 years of age, but there is a reason why Villa allowed him to leave the club after just one year, and it won’t have been purely for financial reasons.
Diaby is simply not good enough to be playing at the very highest level in England, and considering the major wages he’d command and the likely high transfer fee, this is a deal that simply needs to be avoided at all costs by the Old Trafford decision makers.
UEFA have released a statement following the tragic death of Marios Oikonomou, who has passed away aged 33.
Oikonomou played for several high-profile European clubs including Bologna and Sampdoria in Italy’s Serie A. He also had spells at Cagliari, SPAL, Bari, AEK Athens and Copenhagen.
The centre-back earned six caps for Greece between 2016-2018 and most-recently played for Panetolikos in his home country.
Oikonomou had been in an induced coma in hospital following a motorbike crash last month. However, it’s been confirmed that the defender has succumbed to his injuries, passing away nine days on from the accident.
According to the Greek media, the brain damage Oikonomou suffered in the crash was irreversible.
Every English club that has retired one shirt number or more as Liverpool ‘immortalise’ Diogo Jota’s No. 20.
UEFA Issue Statement
UEFA logo
In a statement, UEFA said on Monday: “On behalf of the European football community, we are deeply saddened by the passing of former Greece international Marios Oikonomou at the age of 33.
“Oikonomou earned six caps for Greece and enjoyed a distinguished career in Italy with clubs including Bologna, Cagliari, Bari, SPAL and Sampdoria. He also featured in both the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences go out to his family, friends, teammates and all who knew him.”
Tributes Pour In For Oikonomou
Marios Oikonomou,
Oikonomou began his career with Greek side PAS Giannina, who said in a separate statement: “Today the PAS Giannina family is mourning.
“Marios Oikonomou, a child who earned the love and respect of all of us, left us prematurely. We spent moments of joy, effort and struggle together.
“Always with a smile, always with kindness. To his loved ones, to our President and father Giorgos Oikonomou and his family, we express our deepest sympathy and our most sincere condolences.
“His memory will remain alive in all of us. Mario, we will remember you with love. May your memory be eternal.”
The motorbike crash with another vehicle happened in Ioannina, northwestern Greece, on May 23. Oikonomou was taken to the Hatzikosta Hospital in Ioannina and rushed into emergency surgery, according to The Sun.
He underwent a decompressive craniectomy – a life-saving operation in which a portion of the skull is temporarily removed to alleviate pressure – before receiving specialist supervision.
But despite the best efforts of medical staff, Oikonomou was unable to recovery from his injuries.
“We are deeply saddened by the news of our former player Marios Oikonomou’s passing at the age of 33,” F.C. Copenhagen posted on social media after the news was announced.
“Marios began his football journey in Greece before continuing his career across Europe and eventually joining F.C. Copenhagen, where he represented the club 20 times from 2020 to 2022.
“During his time in Copenhagen, Marios earned the respect and admiration of teammates, staff, and supporters alike. He will be remembered not only for his contributions on the pitch, but also for the person he was off it.
“Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with his family, friends, and all those who knew and loved him.”
Manchester United are already making progress in their bid to significantly strengthen their squad ahead of a return to playing Champions League football next season.
Man United have identified central midfield as a key focus for their recruitment team in the coming months, with the potential for up to three new players to arrive in the position should Manuel Ugarte join Casemiro in sealing an exit from Old Trafford in the next few months.
It has been suggested that the Red Devils want to land a big-money elite replacement for Casemiro, as well as two lower-priced players as they look to complete a major midfield rebuild.
United are closing in on signing a player who fits into the latter category in Ederson, with the club on the brink of agreeing a deal with Atalanta worth less than £40m to bring the Brazilian to Manchester.
Now, the rumours are beginning around other low-cost signings, with Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney being mentioned as a player Michael Carrick is pushing for in recruitment meetings.
Southampton’s Shea Charles is another Championship player being mentioned, given he was in Manchester City’s academy when Jason Wilcox was overlooking it, before he brought him to Southampton in 2023.
Man United View Aurelien Tchouameni as ‘Perfect’ Signing
Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde
Should United complete the signings of Ederson and another low-cost midfielder, the final priority will be to sign an elite replacement for Casemiro.
The Red Devils are said to be willing to spend big to bring the right player in, with Fabrizio Romano confirming that Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni is their ‘dream’ replacement and one they believe is the perfect successor for the veteran Brazilian.
“Manchester United believe Tchouameni could be the perfect player in midfield to replace Casemiro, coming from the same club, Real Madrid. [He has a] winning mentality, top player, elite player, international, who can defend, who can score some goals, so they love Tchouameni, but there are two problems.
“The first one is the salary, which is a huge salary, and the second is that Real Madrid keeps saying, in public and also in private, that their intention is to keep Aurelien Tchouameni, so you can imagine, in order to make a Tchouameni deal happen this summer, you need to go and negotiate on the salary, player side, [and then] Manchester United and Real Madrid also directly on the transfer fee.”
Tchouameni Would Be United’s Best Signing Since Bruno
United have made some good and some bad signings since Bruno Fernandes arrived at the club in 2020, but Tchouameni would be the best since the Portugal international if a deal was completed.
Casemiro is right up there on the good side of that list, but he was 30 years of age at the time the Red Devils bought him, while Frenchman Tchouameni is 26.
As Romano says, the France international is an elite winner who has played almost 200 games for Real Madrid, and has nearly 50 caps for his country.
You don’t do that unless you have something special about you, and there is no doubt that he is the standout candidate to replace Casemiro in this summer transfer window, alongside other targets like Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali.
A deal might be difficult to complete given Real’s current desire to keep him, but if they could land him for £70m it would be a huge statement of intent.
