MANCHESTER UNITED are still hopeful Lisandro Martinez will play again this calendar year.Martinez, 27, has still not returned to team training eight months on from his anterior cruciate ligament injury.AlamyManchester United defender Lisandro Martinez could return before the end of 2025[/caption]EPARuben Amorim has admitted United miss the Argentine[/caption]The centre-back started outdoor training towards the end of United’s pre-season tour in late July and is still doing individual sessions as part of his rehabilitation.United could wait until after the November internationals to ease Martinez back into the squad.Martinez was added to United’s new leadership group in the summer and he travelled with team-mates to the Etihad Stadium last month to provide additional support.The former Ajax defender has been staying behind at the club’s Carrington training base to watch training and attend team meetings.Martinez joined United in July 2022 but has suffered a number of significant injuries during his three years at the club.The Argentina international fractured his metatarsal in April 2023 and required corrective surgery five months later – ruling him out until January 2024.Martinez endured another significant lay-off towards the end of the 2023-24 season with a calf injury before he ruptured his ACL in the 2-0 home defeat to Crystal Palace in February.Luke Shaw has started all seven of United’s Premier League matches on the left of coach Ruben Amorim’s back three.BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UKAmorim prefers a left-footer to occupy the left-hand side and Shaw, a left back by trade, has been reinvented as a full-time centre back.Winter transfer window signing Ayden Heaven, 18, has started only four times for United since he joined from Arsenal. Last month, Amorim admitted the team “miss Martinez a lot” amid their difficult start to the season and said he was looking forward to having the Argentine back.He said: “When you have that injury, you have that time where you recover the hard part quickly, then there is the boring part where it looks like you don’t go to the next step.“We miss a lot Licha, especially in this moment, we miss his aggression in everything he does, we miss him.“But he’s always there in every meeting. In training, he sometimes finishes his [session] and stays to watch the training. We need Licha in this team.”United’s only other concern is with defender Noussair Mazraoui, who will likely return later this month after suffering a thigh injury. The Red Devils eased the pressure on Amorim this weekend with a vital 2-0 win over Sunderland at Old Trafford.But the team face a tough test next up as they travel to Premier League champions Liverpool after the international break.