Four ex-Man Utd players who publicly called out owners before Lisandro Martinez

Two days after Lisandro Martinez rants at Manchester United’s hierarchy, it’s time to look at other examples of players who had worn the shirt before publicly criticising the Glazer family, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, and other figures involved in running the club.

Lisandro Martinez didn’t mince any words in his post-match interview after Manchester United’s 2-0 defeat against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. Unhappy with the result and performance, the World Cup winner aimed at the club’s hierarchy, including football director Jason Wilcox.

Doubling down on his jaw-dropping interview, Martinez released a statement on Wednesday night. It didn’t include an apology as he stated, “My words reflect how I feel.”

Although Wayne Rooney expressed disappointment with Martinez’s comments, he’s one of four former United players on this list to speak out against the ownership while under contract. That applies to one other player, as the other two were former players at the time.

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Unfortunately, when Cristiano Ronaldo departed United for a second time, it was under a grey cloud. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner couldn’t see eye-to-eye with Erik ten Hag due to a difference in opinion over tactical preferences.

The situation boiled over when Ronaldo spoke exclusively to Piers Morgan in an infamous interview where the Portuguese star lambasted several figures at the club, including the Glazer family. It led to the termination of his contract.

“They will get money from the marketing – the sport; they don’t really care, in my opinion,” Ronaldo said.

“The fans, they’re always right. I think the fans should know the truth, should know that the players want the best for the club. I want the best for the club. This is why I came to Manchester United.

“This is why I love this club. But you have some things inside the club which don’t help Manchester [United] reach the top level as [Manchester] City, Liverpool and even now Arsenal, for example. It’s hard, in my opinion; it will be hard for Manchester [United] to be at the top of the game in the next two, three years.”

Ronaldo also criticised Carrington’s training facilities at the time, noting that nothing had changed since he left to sign for Real Madrid in 2009. Ineos have since invested £50m into the training complex at Carrington.

Gary Neville’s a particular one. As a player and loyal servant to Sir Alex Ferguson, he’d never speak out of turn, despite being a United-supporting squad member during the controversial Glazer takeover in 2005 and not retiring until February 2011.

I asked Neville about his stance four years on from his retirement, in 2015, and he explained that as a player, his focus was on performing at the highest level. However, his tone would change dramatically as a Sky Sports pundit.

Neville became vocal against the Glazers and figures like former chief executive Ed Woodward. Perhaps his biggest rant came after the collapse of the proposed European Super League.

“The fact of the matter is that, not just Woodward, but every single executive that sits at the Premier League table, every single executive that’s on these UEFA or FIFA committees, they need throwing out of that club because there’s no way they can be trusted,” Neville told Sky Sports.

“Ed Woodward knew his time in football was finished, probably this morning, and he’s probably done that to keep away from the criticism that would’ve come his way in the next few months.

“However, Ed Woodward is the trunk of the tree, we now need to go for the roots. I said last night I felt complicit, they’ve declared their hand.

“While they were sat at the club never making a statement, never showing their hands, never doing media conferences, yes they were taking money out of the club, yes they’ve leveraged against the club, there’s nothing we can do about that once the club became a PLC.

“They attacked every single football fan in this country with what they did. The Glazers have no place in Manchester anymore.

“We have to work hard together to ensure that ownership rules in this country are changed, that we have a system whereby this cannot happen. Whether that’s Government intervention, independent regulator, whether it be a fan-owned club rule, whatever it is – we have to make sure that this is the catalyst for change.

“The people have spoken. We were on the brink of anarchy if this continued.”

In October 2010, Rooney famously handed in a transfer request. The issues raised by Rooney stemmed from fears over the direction the club was taking under the Glazers’ ownership.

Rooney felt United couldn’t match his ambitions, as revealed in a strong statement 16 years ago to this week. It read: “I met with David Gill [United’s chief executive at the time] last week and he did not give me any of the assurances I was seeking about the future squad. I told him that I would not be signing a new contract.

“I was interested to hear what Sir Alex had to say yesterday and surprised by some of it. It is absolutely true, as he said, that my agent and I have had a number of meetings with the club about a new contract. During those meetings in August, I asked for assurances about the continued ability of the club to attract the top players in the world.

“I have never had anything but complete respect for MUFC. How could I not have done given its fantastic history and especially the last six years in which I have been lucky to play a part?

“For me its all about winning trophies – as the club has always done under Sir Alex. Because of that I think the questions I was asking were justified.

“Despite recent difficulties, I know I will always owe Sir Alex Ferguson a huge debt. He is a great manager and mentor who has helped and supported me from the day he signed me from Everton when I was only 18.

“For Manchester United’s sake I wish he could go on forever because he’s a one‑off and a genius.”

Three weeks ago, Eric Cantona spoke damnably of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, stressing he would not have signed for United from Leeds had the British billionaire been a co-owner of the club in 1992.

The French icon was reacting to comments made by Ratcliffe earlier this year, when he claimed the United Kingdom had been “colonised” by immigrants. Although he backtracked with an apology for those remarks, that didn’t stop him from doubling down, expressing his belief that the country “is on the slide” because of immigration.

Speaking to United fan Pete Boyle in the Republic of Ireland as part of his ‘Eric The King Cantona’ tour, he answered a question about whether he’d sign for United now that Ratcliffe is involved in running the club.

“Of course not [he wouldn’t have signed]. You know what I think about all of this, with this kind of politics. And I cannot understand that someone like this can say something like this when he’s one of the owners of the club.”

Cantona added: “Football is a very popular sport. Football is made – all the greatest players come from different waves of immigration. Everywhere, in France, in England, everywhere.

“In France for instance, the greatest players in France, they all come from different waves of immigration. I made a documentary on that, French Football: An Immigrant History. Raymond Kopa, in the fifties, was the son of Polish immigrants who came to France, worked in France, and worked hard in France.

“And then the Italians, Italians like Platini. And then Spanish, like me, my mother came from Spanish refugees. I cannot accept this kind of thing.”

Let us know what you expect Manchester United to do? Could decisions be made before the end of this month?

Most United fans agreed with Martinez’s comments and believe Wilcox should be held accountable. His criticisms were unprecedented, but they echoed what many of us, and former players, have been saying for a long time.

The Glazers may have less of an influence on the club today, but it would be naive to think their gross mismanagement for over 20 years is not having a negative effect on the club. They remain majority owners, too.

Only time will tell how Ineos react to Martinez’s comments. His statement this evening should ease the situation a little.