Manchester United's Champions League campaign suffered another blow as Atlético Madrid beat them 2-0 at the Metropolitano, with Pablo Barrios scoring after just 53 seconds and Leny Yoro sent off late on.

The defeat was followed by an extraordinary outburst from the defender Lisandro Martínez, who publicly criticised the club's leadership, saying: "I expect more."

A nightmare start

United were behind before many of their supporters had found their seats. Lee Kang-in's pass sent Álex Baena into wide-open space on the left, and he cut into the area unchallenged.

Baena laid the ball back across goal and Barrios shot first time. Ayden Heaven scrambled to block but could only deflect the ball into the net.

Barrios ran off holding up six fingers, the shirt number of Atlético's captain, Koke, whose mother had died in the hours before kick-off. Koke's shirt was raised on the bench as the stadium roared.

Chances spurned

United did find a foothold. Bryan Mbeumo had two clear chances: the first, after neat footwork on the right, went wide; the second, after an exchange with Youri Tielemans, was blocked by Jan Oblak. Carlos Baleba headed the resulting corner straight at the goalkeeper.

But Atlético soon reasserted control. They moved the ball with a pace and conviction United could not match, and had 66% of possession by half-time.

Álex Grimaldo struck the bar with a superb free-kick, and Johnny Cardoso had a sweeping shot ruled out by the video assistant referee for a Marcos Llorente handball in the build-up. Early in the second half, Julián Alvarez volleyed against the post.

Bruno Fernandes had United's best chance to equalise when Tielemans found him on the edge of the area, but Oblak raced off his line to deny him.

The red card

On 65 minutes United made a triple change, with Mason Mount, Amad Diallo and Joshua Zirkzee replacing Marcus Rashford, Tielemans and Baleba. For a spell the visitors had more of the ball and the lead was still only one.

Then it fell apart. Jonathan David ran through the middle on to a pass from Morten Hjulmand, and Yoro went with him before both players fell. The referee, Glenn Nyberg, initially let play continue, but was called to the pitchside monitor and showed the United defender a red card.

Atlético added a second goal against the 10 men to seal a deserved victory.

Simeone prowls, Carrick stands still

The contrast on the touchline was stark. Diego Simeone prowled his technical area and was booked for waving an imaginary card. Michael Carrick stood motionless in the corner, his chin in his hand.

Before the game, the United manager had said: "Sometimes when it's not quite going for you, you see who's really there." On the night, too few of his players were.

Martínez speaks out

Afterwards, Martínez went further than any United player has in recent seasons, saying he expected more from those running the club. His comments were seen as a pointed criticism of the football director, Jason Wilcox, and the club's recruitment.

According to reports, several of his teammates share the view that the club's football leadership is failing. That is a dangerous moment for any club: when the dressing room turns its frustration upwards rather than inwards.

Where United go from here

The result leaves United with work to do to reach the knockout stages of the Champions League, and adds to a growing sense of crisis at Old Trafford.

For Atlético, it was a statement of their strength at home and an emotional night for their captain. For United, it was another evening that raised more questions than it answered – about the players, the manager and, now openly, the people above them.