MANCHESTER UNITED icon Nicky Butt has criticized Lisandro Martinez for displaying a Falklands banner during Argentina’s World Cup campaign.

The Red Devils defender has attracted scrutiny following a rough start to the season, leaving Michael Carrick’s team struggling at 17th in the Premier League standings.

He also stirred controversy by calling out United’s management regarding transfers after the team’s 2-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid last month.

Martinez was part of a group of Argentina players who faced backlash for raising the contentious banner following their 2-1 victory over England in the semi-finals in July.

The banner read: “Las Malvinas son Argentinas,” which translates to “The Falklands are Argentinian.”

Martinez was pictured holding the banner alongside former Tottenham stars Cristian Romero and Giovani Lo Celso.

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Although Martinez faced no penalties, the Argentine Football Association was fined £235,000 for the political act.

Butt criticized the former Ajax star for his actions this summer, stating he no longer deserves sympathy given his poor showings this season.

He expressed his thoughts on Piers Morgan Uncensored: “He lives in our country and is parading with an Argentina flag at the World Cup. What is he thinking?

“Then he expects people to give him support when he performs poorly?”

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“Some people need to realize that it doesn’t matter if you’re earning £200,000 a week and cruising in your Rolls Royce; you can’t expect people to pat you on the back when you’re underperforming and criticizing others.”

Butt condemned Martinez’s controversial interview, saying he “threw in the towel” after elbowing Morgan Rogers, which led to his red card and a penalty conceded in the 2-0 loss to Chelsea.

The Class of 92 member asserted that Martinez would have faced serious backlash for such behavior during his own playing days.

“You can’t speak to these players; they get too sensitive about it,” he commented.

“Then he has the nerve to go into an interview and complain about the management’s decisions on signing new players while he’s not performing well himself.

“If they were to sign new players, he’d be one of the first to go. He threw it in the other day with that elbow because he simply isn’t strong enough to defend.”

“Back in my time, he would have been completely called out. Everyone would have asked, ‘who do you think you are to talk about me with such poor performances?’”

“Even if he were European Player of the Year, you would still not address your teammates like that.”

“He has transformed from a fan favorite to someone the supporters want to see leave the club, and he has severely damaged his reputation.”

Carrick, who is reportedly on the verge of losing his position at Old Trafford, appeared to ignore Martinez after his dismissal against Chelsea, and the player has been linked to a January transfer exit.