Paul Scholes tells Lisandro Martinez to 'grow up' over criticism but praises performance in Manchester derby

19 January 2026, 20:13

Paul Scholes has continued his war of words with Man Utd's Lisandro Martinez by telling the Argentine to "grow up" over his response to criticism, but praised the defender's performance in Saturday's Manchester derby win.

After playing his part in United's 2-0 win over City at Old Trafford, Martinez challenged Scholes to speak to him face-to-face after he and Nicky Butt had mocked the defender's size before his battle with Erling Haaland, suggesting the Norwegian would "pick him up and run with him".

Scholes said he had previously exchanged messages with Martinez on social media and given the player his phone number but had "not heard anything".

But responding directly to Martinez's comments on the latest edition of his The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast alongside fellow former Man Utd midfielder Butt, Scholes said: "It's tongue-in-cheek, it's obvious Haaland isn't actually going to pick him up and run with him, it's a figure of speech," he said.

• Report & highlights: Man Utd 2-0 Man City
• Got Sky? Watch Man Utd games LIVE on your phone