Ralf Rangnick reveals Anthony Martial REFUSED to be a part of Man United squad for Aston Villa draw

Anthony Martial faces the risk of disciplinary action after Ralf Rangnick said the Frenchman had not wanted to be part of Manchester United’s squad for their 2-2 draw at Aston Villa.

Martial wants to leave United, with Sevilla interested in signing him this window. United had only eight players on the bench, including two goalkeepers, as Rangnick dropped the bombshell that Martial had been unwilling to travel.

‘He didn’t want to be in the squad,’ said Rangnick. ‘He would have been in the squad normally, but he didn’t want to. That is the reason why he was not travelling with us yesterday (on Friday).’

Ralf Rangnick (above) confirmed the Frenchman did not want travel to the Midlands match

United are seeking a loan fee for Martial and would like the forward’s wages to be paid in full. Earlier in the week, Cristiano Ronaldo called for an improvement in attitude at Old Trafford after another season in which they have struggled to challenge the Premier League elite. 

The Red Devils were pegged back from two goals up on Saturday night as strikes for Jacob Ramsay and Philippe Coutinho cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’ brace either side of half-time. 

Reflecting on the result, Rangnick told Sky Sports: ‘It is very difficult to find positives after this, we have spells where i thought it was our best game since I have come here. We were completely dominant.

‘We have taken steps forward, but there are still many things we need to improve on. The plan was to press them in the mid-zone, and we did that for the first 30 mins, they were some of the positives.

Rangnick named eight substitutes and two goalkeepers on his bench for the 2-2 draw at Villa

‘When you are 2-0 you must defend better. We still gave away too many goals; we were not as compact and then conceded both goals. We were not as courageous, the way we prepared from our goal in terms of pressing was great

‘We have two more important games coming up, what we have shown today is a step forwards, this draw doesn’t feel like a point.’

With Martial refusing to play, United’s forward line was further weakened by injuries to Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford, with Edinson Cavani and youngster Anthony Elanga partnering the likes of Fernandes and Mason Greenwood in attack.

Rangnick hopes to see both Ronaldo and Rashford back in the team for United’s next game: a trip to Brentford on Wednesday night.   

The Red Devils’ two dropped points on Saturday night meant they remained in seventh place, five points behind West Ham in fourth with only one game in hand over the Hammers.