Michael Carrick must now deal with more dressing-room unrest after Lisandro Martínez’s attack on the board

“Toxic”: this is the damning characterisation of Bruno Fernandes from one highly placed Manchester United source after the captain’s incendiary betrayal of Michael Carrick.

There has surely never been a greater anti-leadership act in United’s storied history than Fernandes questioning the man who trusts him to unify the dressing room and execute his on-field plan. The Portuguese has proved this faith wrong at the precise moment he was required to step up and exude a defiant togetherness.