Man Utd have conceded six goals in their opening three Premier League games.
The points were shared at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.(Image: 2026 Manchester United FC)
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Fingers were pointed at Luke Shaw and Senne Lammens when Everton equalised for the first time against Manchester United on Sunday.
Shaw probably could have been tighter to Tyrique George, while Lammens was beaten at his near post, but Lisandro Martinez was more culpable, and his role in the build-up seemed to go under the radar.
Hayden Hackney was able to slip George into the box because the ball ricocheted back to him off Martinez, who was caught flat-footed after Thierno Barry's failed dummy attempt.
Barry bothced the dummy attempt from Hackney's initial pass. Martinez was standing a few yards behind Barry, and he could not sort his feet out in time, causing the ball to bounce off him and back into Hackney's path.
It would be harsh to scrutinise Martinez's role in the build-up to the goal if he'd been standing directly behind Barry, which would have made it impossible to react, but he was a few yards behind his marker, and the pass wasn't played at the kind of pace that made it impossible to clear.
Martinez could have thwarted the move with a simple first-time clearance. However, his body did not move as fast as his brain would have liked, which could be put down to fatigue, so the ball rebounded off his legs.
The Argentina international attempted to make amends by pressing Hackney to win the ball back, but he couldn't challenge the agile midfielder, who played the assist to George.
Martinez was so out of kilter during the move that he almost fell over as he ambled back into the box.
His body language when the ball hit the back of the net was fascinating. Martinez is usually one of the first to lead the inquiry into how United have conceded, but his sheepishness on this occasion was telling.
Perhaps it was an admission of guilt that he should have done better at the start of the move. Most supporters were cursing Shaw and Lammens, but Martinez could have nipped it in the bud before the ball reached George.
Both of Everton's goals in the 2-2 draw were outstanding finishes, which can be argued to be unlucky for United, but there were preventable moments leading up to them, and those small moments can make a huge difference.
Martinez was flat-footed when Hackney made the initial pass.(Image: Sky Sports)
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United have now conceded two goals in each of their Premier League games this season, something Michael Carrick was asked about during his post-match press conference at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
"That's two strikes from a distance really that are two really good strikes from their point of view," he said. "Sometimes they fly in the top corner, and more often than not, they probably don't.
"So there's a little bit of that. But we obviously can't ignore it. We need to concede less goals to give us a better chance of winning games, but we'll certainly look at that and keep improving."
If the analysis team look over the six goals United have conceded against Hull, Ipswich and Everton, they will see Martinez has been at fault for two (Ipswich's second goal and Everton's first equaliser).
The Ipswich goal did not matter, considering United were leading 5-1 in the 90th minute when Martinez faffed with the ball at the back before conceding possession, but it's now fair to suggest there's an air of vulnerability following another mistake against Everton.
Martinez has played an important role in the team's build-up play since being brought back into the team against Ipswich - his passing was important against Everton - but his defending hasn't been up to scratch.
This has been an ongoing issue with Martinez, who hasn't been able to perform at a consistently high level since his debut season in 2022/23, which cemented his status as a fan favourite.
There was even an argument at the end of last season that United should have sold Martinez and invested in a dependable, starting centre-back.
The case for selling Martinez was that United's senior centre-backs had all picked up injuries at different times throughout last season, and if one centre-back had to be sold to offset a new arrival, then Martinez was the only choice.
The World Cup made it difficult to move the pieces on the board, though, and there has always been a strong belief in Martinez, who is one of the tone-setters during training sessions at Carrington.
Carrick is a huge advocate of Martinez, hence why he brought him into the side after the Hull defeat, but it would be logical to drop him to the bench in favour of starting Leny Yoro in the Champions League this week.
Martinez has been at fault in the last two matches and the team should be picked on form.