Ralf Rangnick has told Anthony Martial to inform him in person if he wants to leave Manchester United, rather than go through his agent.

France international Martial's representative, Philippe Lamboley, said on Friday that the 26-year-old is looking to join a new club in January due to a lack of playing time.

Martial has played just 358 minutes of football for the Red Devils in all competitions this season – the 20th most in the squad – starting only four times.

"Anthony wishes to leave the club in January," Lamboley said to Sky Sports. "He just needs to play. He doesn't want to stay in January and I will speak to the club soon."

But news of the former Monaco player wanting to leave United came as a surprise to recently-appointed interim manager Rangnick.

"I don't communicate with agents via the media and press," Rangnick said. "The player hasn't spoken with me or us about it.

"To be honest, what his agent says via the media is not of that much interest to me. It should be the player. 

"If he really has the wish to go to another club it should be the player who informs either the board or myself. I have never spoken about a player via the media and via agents."

Martial's most recent start came in United's 2-0 Champions League win over Villarreal on November 23 under previous interim boss Michael Carrick.

He has not been part of the squad for Rangnick's first three games in charge, which the German coach explained was down to Martial ruling himself out of contention due to injury.

"After the final training session before the Crystal Palace game, after training with the team, he informed the doctor and the medical department that he would not be available because the pain in his knee is too big," Rangnick said.

"We have to wait and see. Maybe he can train again [before playing Brentford on Tuesday] but I have to speak to the doctor first."

United have won both of their Premier League games since Rangnick took charge, the Red Devils edging past Crystal Palace and Norwich City by the same 1-0 scoreline.

The Red Devils have been hit by a coronavirus outbreak and revealed on Monday they are in discussions with the Premier League over whether the clash against the Bees will go ahead.

Manchester United's Premier League clash with Brentford on Tuesday is in doubt after an outbreak of coronavirus led to the club's training facilities being shut down.

United confirmed on Monday that their Carrington Training Complex would be closed for 24 hours "to minimise risk of any further infection" after several staff and players tested positive for COVID-19.

The Red Devils said discussions were ongoing with the Premier League over whether it is safe for the match at Brentford Community Stadium to go ahead.

A statement read: "Manchester United can confirm that following PCR test confirmation of [Sunday's] positive LFT [lateral flow test] COVID-19 cases among the first team staff and players, the decision has been taken to close down first team operations at the Carrington Training Complex for 24 hours, to minimise risk of any further infection.

"Individuals who tested positive are isolating per Premier League protocols.

"Given cancellation of training and disruption to the squad, and with the health of players and staff the priority, the club is in discussion with the Premier League whether it is safe for Tuesday's fixture against Brentford to continue, both from a COVID infection and player preparation perspective.

"Team and staff travel to London will be deferred pending the result of that discussion."

Sunday's top-flight match between Brighton and Hove Albion and Tottenham was postponed after several confirmed positives among players and staff at the London club.

United have won both of their Premier League matches under interim manager Ralf Rangnick 1-0, with Crystal Palace and Norwich City on the receiving end.

Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos will come up against Real Madrid after Paris Saint-Germain were paired with Los Blancos in the Champions League round of 16, which had to undergo a re-draw.

PSG were initially drawn against Manchester United on Monday, throwing up a tantalising encounter between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

However, a technical error meant the draw had to take place again and while Messi will not meet Ronaldo just yet, the Barcelona great will go up against his former club's Clasico rivals.

Having finished second in Group A behind Manchester City, who were handed a favourable tie against Sporting CP, PSG will host Madrid in the first leg in February before visiting the Santiago Bernabeu in March.

That means Mbappe, who is a high-profile target for Madrid and could well have already signed a pre-contract agreement with Los Blancos by the time these fixtures roll around, will go up against his suitors.

It also sees Madrid legend Ramos go up against his old club, and it is the same story for Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti, who coached PSG from 2011 to 2013.

United, on the other hand, will face Atletico Madrid, who had initially been due to play Bayern Munich. The Bundesliga giants have been drawn against Salzburg.

Liverpool may well lament their luck. Salzburg had been their original opponents, but Jurgen Klopp's team now have to prepare for a tie against Serie A champions Inter - albeit they made light work of the Nerazzurri's rivals Milan in the group stage.

Coincidentally, holders Chelsea were again drawn against Lille, having been set a tie with the Ligue 1 champions during the initial draw. 

Villarreal will take on Juventus and Ajax go up against Benfica.

Champions League last 16 draw in full:

Salzburg v Bayern Munich
Sporting CP v Manchester City
Benfica v Ajax
Chelsea v Lille
Atletico Madrid v Manchester United
Villarreal v Juventus
Inter v Liverpool 
PSG v Real Madrid

Pep Guardiola insists Jack Grealish does not need to do anything differently in order to prove his value to Manchester City.

The midfielder signed from Aston Villa for a British record transfer fee of £100million, ensuring expectations were high on his arrival.

Although City have stormed to the Premier League summit ahead of Tuesday's visit of Leeds United, there is a sense that Grealish – with 11 starts and one goal in the top flight to his name this season – is yet to find his footing.

But Guardiola has no such concerns over the England star.

"Grealish doesn't have to do anything different. The way he's playing is good," said the City boss. 

"It will come, absolutely no problem. He'll continue to practice because you've got so many fantastic players. He thinks we have to score correct goals all the time. He doesn't have to.

"What he has to do is play feel like he knows what he has to do. He has to do exactly what he is doing. No more than that. The rest is coming in time.

"He has chances to score goals every game and one day he is going to do it. He could have had a hat-trick against Watford and he will have that chance again."

Grealish will hope to get the chance to make his mark against Leeds in midweek, with Guardiola anticipating a stern test against Marcelo Bielsa's team as City go in search of a seventh consecutive league win.

"Before, we played against them, we knew it, we felt it. It is one of the toughest opponents," he said, with his side winless in four against Leeds.

"They play every week in a special unique way and we play against the special and unique way just two times a year. It is completely different to other opponents.

"They are going to play in a way we are not used to in these kinds of games. At the same time, it is at the Etihad, we know a lot of people will be there and we want to do a good game.

"[Patrick] Bamford was injured for a long time now. [Kalvin] Phillips, too. A few important players. But if there is one person who doesn't complain about what happens, it is Marcelo. He loves to work when the situation is tough."

UEFA has confirmed the Champions League last-16 draw will have to be re-done after a technical error with the initial procedure.

Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain were set to face each other in the knockout stage, but that headline fixture and the other ties will have to be redrawn after what UEFA labelled as a "technical problem with the software of an external service provider that instructs the officials as to which teams are eligible to play each other."

United were initially drawn to face Villarreal, but the sides were unable to play each other as they had previously featured in the same group.

After complaints from affected clubs, including Atletico Madrid, UEFA later announced the draw would take place again at 1500 CET (1400 GMT).

UEFA's deputy general secretary, Giorgio Marchetti, spotted the mistake involving United's ball and ordered the tie to be drawn again. Manchester City were instead picked to go against Villarreal.

Yet United, due to the technical error, were subsequently blocked from being selected as one of the teams eligible to play the next team, which was LaLiga champions Atleti.

Bayern Munich were ultimately picked to face Atleti, while United were drawn in the glamour tie of the round against PSG – a game that would have seen Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi meet in the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time since the 2010-11 semi-finals.

The re-draw could well benefit United, given the challenge of facing PSG. However, holders Chelsea and Liverpool were handed favourable draws against Lille and Salzburg respectively.

Inter had been due to face Ajax, while Sporting CP were up against Juventus. Real Madrid had been drawn against Benfica.

UEFA has confirmed the Champions League last-16 draw will have to be re-done after a technical error with the initial procedure.

Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain were set to face each other in the knockout stage, but that headline fixture and the other ties will have to be redrawn after what UEFA labelled as a "technical problem with the software of an external service provider that instructs the officials as to which teams are eligible to play each other."

United were initially drawn to face Villarreal, but the sides were unable to play each other as they had previously featured in the same group.

After complaints from affected clubs, including Atletico Madrid, UEFA later announced the draw would take place again at 1500 CET (1400 GMT).

Lionel Messi will once again face off with old foe Cristiano Ronaldo after Paris Saint-Germain were drawn against Manchester United in the headline fixture of the Champions League round of 16.

Former Barcelona star Messi meets Ronaldo in the knockout stages, with United visiting the Parc des Princes in February before the return leg at Old Trafford will take place in March. The legendary duo also met in last season's group stage when Los Cules went up against Juventus.

PSG finished second behind Group A winners Manchester City, while United were top of Group F.

If Messi against Ronaldo was not enough to look forward to, the tie also sees Mauricio Pochettino face the side that he has long been touted as a possible manager of.

Ex-Spurs boss Pochettino remains among the favourites to replace interim boss Ralf Rangnick, who is in charge until at least the end of the season.

United have met PSG in two of the previous three seasons. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer masterminded a 3-1 win at the same stage in March 2019, a victory that saw United through 4-3 on aggregate and secured him the job on a permanent basis.

The sides played each other again in the group stage of the 2019-20 campaign, with Thomas Tuchel's PSG winning at Old Trafford after losing the home game 2-1.

There was, however, a nervy moment for UEFA's officials when United were initially drawn against Villarreal, but due to teams who played each other in the group stage not being able to face each other in the last 16, the tie had to be re-drawn.

It remains to be seen whether any clubs lodge a complaint, with initial reports suggesting the draw will stand.

United's rivals and last season's runners-up City were instead drawn against Villarreal, who were victors of the 2020-21 Europa League.

Elsewhere in Monday's draw, holders Chelsea were paired with Ligue 1 champions Lille and Liverpool landed a favourable draw against Salzburg.

Atletico Madrid, who scraped through in second place behind Liverpool in Group B, face a daunting tie with Bayern Munich.

Benfica went through in Group E at the expense of Barcelona, and the Portuguese giants were drawn against the Blaugrana's Clasico rivals and 13-time European champions Madrid.

Ajax topped a Champions League group for the first time since 1995-96, and were drawn against Inter, with Juventus meeting Sporting CP, who are making their first appearance in the knockout stage since 2008-09.

Champions League last 16 draw in full:

Benfica v Real Madrid
Villarreal v Manchester City
Atletico Madrid v Bayern Munich
Salzburg v Liverpool
Inter v Ajax
Sporting CP v Juventus
Chelsea v Lille
PSG v Manchester United

Brentford boss Thomas Frank is unsure on the precedent for coronavirus cases within a squad leading to the cancellation of a Premier League game.

The Bees, who defeated Watford 2-1 on Friday thanks to last-gasp Bryan Mbeumo penalty, are set to host Manchester United on Tuesday.

However, Stats Perform understands United saw a small number of positive tests returned among players and staff after they returned from Saturday's 1-0 win at Norwich City.

The entire group that travelled to Carrow Road for Saturday's match had returned negative results in a round of routine testing.

Individuals who returned positive lateral flow test results on Sunday were sent home before training, which was then adjusted to consist of outdoor individual and non-contact sessions. The club are understood to have notified the Premier League.

It remains to be seen whether Tuesday's game goes ahead as scheduled. Sunday's match between Brighton and Hove Albion and Tottenham was postponed after Spurs suffered a COVID-19 outbreak that also led to their Europa Conference League game with Rennes being called off.

Frank, who has been without star man Ivan Toney for the last two games due to the striker contracting coronavirus, believes clarity is needed on the exact number of cases that would result in a postponement.

He told a news conference: "We are planning to play the game, that's what we are focusing on, we can't control anything else.

"I think it'd need to be a significant amount of COVID cases for the game to be cancelled. Myself, I'm a little bit in doubt because when is it enough cases for the game to be cancelled? But I guess that the Tottenham situation is the precedent that we are going for.

"I think it's a very tricky situation and it's very important that all of us are following the rules and restrictions. If they can make it very clear what the rules are for cancelling games, then that would be good.

"Of course, I don't know the number for cancellations. Maybe I'm not updated enough, but I could only read that it was eight players and five backroom staff [at Tottenham]. I do not know if it's the total amount, or the eight players that was enough to close down the training ground and postpone the two games.

"If that's the situation, that's the marker we need to go for going forward. Anything less than that, we need to carry on."

Asked if there was a chance the Premier League may have to be suspended over the coming weeks, Frank replied: "I'm 100 per cent sure that the Premier League can continue through the winter, no doubt. We have the vaccines, the boosters, we will continue."

Though United may well be missing players should the game go ahead, Frank good-naturedly dismissed the suggestion that would make the challenge any easier for Brentford.

"We are just missing last year's top scorer, one of our best centre-backs and I think we are playing one of the biggest clubs in the world," he said.

"Decent players, what is he called, number seven, [Cristiano] Ronaldo… [Marcus] Rashford, [Bruno] Fernandes, maybe the most creative player in the Premier League in the last two years. I think it'll even it up."

Paul Pogba's club future continues to be a major topic of speculation.

The 28-year-old is into the final year of his Manchester United contract.

Pogba has flirted with the idea of an extension but has been stalling on a decision.

TOP STORY – REAL AND PSG HOME IN ON POGBA

Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are both ready to ramp up the race to sign Paul Pogba from Manchester United, claims Marca.

Pogba is running down his United contract, meaning he will be a free agent in mid-2022.

Real and PSG will rekindle their interest after new United interim manager Ralf Rangnick said Pogba should not need to be convinced to stay.

ROUND-UP

- Manchester United forward Edinson Cavani has offered his services to Juventus, according to Calciomercato. The Uruguayan veteran has also been linked with Barcelona.

- Barcelona are plotting moves for Chelsea's trio Cesar Azpilicueta, Christian Pulisic and Antonio Rudiger, reports Mundo Deportivo.

- Milan are circling to sign Liverpool's super-sub Divock Origi as they seek a long-term replacement for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, claims Tuttomercato. Atalanta are also interested.

- Calciomercato reports that Roma are considering a move for Spezia midfielder Jiulio Maggiore. The 23-year-old is out of contract in 2023 and valued at €8m (£6.8m).

- Roma are also interested in a move for Norwich City's Max Aarons, according to Corriere dello Sport. Tottenham and Everton are also in the race.

- Lyon are interested in a move for Villarreal's Arnaut Danjuma, claims Todofichajes. Manchester United and Barcelona are also tracking the ex-Bournemouth winger.

Manchester United have seen their preparations for the Premier League clash with Brentford disrupted by a COVID-19 outbreak.

Stats Perform understands the Red Devils saw a small number of positive tests returned among players and staff after they returned from the 1-0 win at Norwich City.

The entire group that travelled to Carrow Road for Saturday's match had tested negative in a round of routine testing.

The individuals who returned positive lateral flow test results on Sunday were sent home before training, which was then adjusted to consist of outdoor individual and non-contact sessions.

The club are understood to have notified the Premier League, with their match against Brentford coming up on Tuesday.

Sunday's game between Brighton and Hove Albion and Tottenham was postponed after Spurs suffered a COVID-19 outbreak that also led to their Europa Conference League game with Rennes being called off.

The Championship match between QPR and Sheffield United on Monday has been postponed too, after the London club said they would be unable to fulfil the fixture due to "a number of positive COVID-19 cases within their squad".

The United Kingdom government announced in the past week that fans attending sporting events with crowds of more than 10,000 people will need to provide proof of having had two doses of a coronavirus vaccine or a negative test result.

The change in rules, which is due to come into effect on December 15, is among measures aimed at reducing the spread of the Omicron variant of the virus.

The UK's COVID-19 alert level has also been moved from three to four. Authorities said community transmission of the virus was high and, while mostly driven by the Delta variant, the emergence of Omicron "adds additional and rapidly increasing risk to the public and healthcare services".

Manchester United's search for a permanent new manager continues to roll on.

Ralf Rangnick has taken over on an interim basis following Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's axing.

Several big names have been linked with the vacant post.

TOP STORY – TEN HAG TOP OF MAN UTD'S LIST

Ajax head coach Erik ten Hag has moved to the head of the queue to be Manchester United's new manager, claims The Mirror.

Ten Hag guided Ajax through a record-breaking Champions League group campaign where they won all six games.

United have now made appointing him their priority as he ticks all the boxes for the 20-time English champions.

ROUND-UP

- Newcastle United have reached out to Manchester United about the prospect of a January move for Jesse Lingard, claims The Sun.

- Tottenham are tracking Chelsea's Andreas Christensen, joining Manchester City and Manchester United in pursuit of him, reports the Daily Star.

- Liverpool have set a £10million asking price for West Ham target Nat Phillips, according to The Sun.

- The Reds are also interested in signing Real Madrid winger Rodrygo and are willing to pay £68m (€80m), reports El Nacional.

- La Gazzetta dello Sport claims that Inter have not held any talks with Stefan dr Vrij amid links with Tottenham and Newcastle United.

- Brazilian powerhouse Corinthians have enquired about Manchester United's veteran Uruguayan forward Edinson Cavani, claims Globo Esporte.

The Premier League provided its usual drama on Saturday with decisive penalties awarded in all but one of the fixtures.

Chelsea left it late against Leeds United in a game that saw referee Chris Kavanagh award three penalties, while Manchester United earned a narrow win thanks to another Cristiano Ronaldo spot-kick.

Liverpool also profited from the penalty spot as Steven Gerrard made his return to Anfield with Aston Villa, and another conversion from 12 yards aided Manchester City at home to Wolves.

Elsewhere, Arsenal cruised past Southampton, who are yet to win at Emirates Stadium in 23 Premier League attempts – the longest winless run for one club away to another in the competition's history.

With tons of action to unpack, Stats Perform takes an in-depth look at the pick of Opta facts from Saturday's clashes.

Manchester City 1-0 Wolves: Jimenez moment of madness gifts Citizens win

Raheem Sterling reached a century of Premier League goals as City scraped by 10-man Wolves, who could not hold on after Raul Jimenez's bizarre red card for two yellows in a matter of seconds.

Jimenez became the first ever Mexican player to receive a red card in the Premier League, making Mexico the 76th nation to have a player dismissed in the competition.

Sterling then scored from the penalty spot after Joao Moutinho was adjudged to have handled, becoming the 32nd player to 100 Premier League goals and the eighth-youngest at 27 years and three days.

Pep Guardiola's side held on to that slender lead and have now won 32 of their 40 league games in 2021 (D2 L6) – only Liverpool in 1982 (33) have won more matches in a single calendar year in English top-flight history.

Chelsea 3-2 Leeds United: Spot-kick drama condemns Whites to another London loss

Leeds have a miserable record in London and that was extended to just two wins in their past 33 matches in all competitions in the capital despite Raphinha finding the net when a first penalty was awarded in the visitors' favour at Stamford Bridge.

Mason Mount cancelled out that opener, before Raphinha became the 13th player – and first Leeds star – to both score and concede a penalty in the same Premier League game when he brought down Antonio Rudiger, allowing Jorginho to score.

Although Joe Gelhardt netted Leeds' first top-flight goal by a teenager since James Milner versus Everton in April 2004 to level the match again, Rudiger won a second penalty – the first Chelsea player to earn two in a Premier League game since Yuri Zhirkov against Aston Villa in March 2010 – deep into stoppage time.

Jorginho settled the result with his second from 12 yards after 93 minutes and 11 seconds, the Blues' latest winning goal in the competition since Florent Malouda's strike against Stoke City in September 2009 (93:36).

Liverpool 1-0 Aston Villa: Salah downs shot-shy Villans

Returning hero Gerrard was greeted with a standing ovation back at Anfield, but the latest king of the Kop ensured his Villa side went away empty-handed. 

Mohamed Salah again made the difference, the Egypt international converting his 15th straight Premier League penalty – the second-longest ever such run in the competition after Matt Le Tissier (23 between 1994 and 2000).

Salah is also now just one game away from Jamie Vardy's record of either scoring or assisting in 15 straight Premier League matches between August and December 2015.

This was Liverpool's 100th 1-0 win in the competition and their second in a row for the first time since December 2015, requiring just the one goal as Villa failed to register a single shot on target in a league match for the first time since December 2019 against Sheffield United.

Norwich City 0-1 Manchester United: Another Ronaldo rescue act for Red Devils

Ralf Rangnick has pinpointed United's defensive issues as a key area to fix and there were more positive signs on that front – at least on the stats sheet.

Rangnick became just the second Manchester United manager to register a clean sheet in his first two league games after Ernest Mangnall in 1903.

United were far from convincing in either defence or attack, though, again relying on David de Gea and match-winner Ronaldo, who won and scored United's 50th successful away Premier League spot-kick – only Liverpool (60) have netted more such goals in the competition's history.

Ronaldo also became only the third player to score for three different United managers in a single season after James Hanson and Joe Spence both did so in 1926-27.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has hit another career milestone after netting his 300th goal across Europe's top five leagues.

The Milan veteran scored a spectacular stoppage-time equaliser against Udinese on Saturday in what was his 450th appearance in the top five leagues.

That took Ibrahimovic to 300 goals in those competitions – the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, LaLiga and Ligue 1.

Only Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have reached that mark previously in the 21st century.

Ibrahimovic has featured in four of the top five leagues, with the Bundesliga the only competition missing off his list.

Having joined Juventus in 2004 from Ajax, the Sweden striker has gone on to play for Inter, Barcelona, Milan (over two spells), Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United.

Ibrahimovic has now scored seven Serie A goals this term. He netted 15 last season and 10 in 2019-20 after he returned to Milan following a stint in MLS with the LA Galaxy.

The 40-year-old scored 17 goals in his sole full season in the Premier League with United, averaging a strike every 143 minutes.

His best minutes-per-goal ratio across a full league campaign so far came in his final season at PSG in 2015-16 (67), in which he also set up a career-high 13 league goals for team-mates.

Ibrahimovic scored 38 times in Ligue 1 that season, with an impressive shot conversion rate of 24.52 per cent from 155 attempts.

He has scored 30 or more league goals on two occasions, in 2015-16 and in 2012-13, also with PSG.

Ibrahimovic's maiden season in one of the big five leagues produced 16 goals for Juve. He failed to settle at Barca under Pep Guardiola but still contributed 16 LaLiga goals in 2009-10.

Just over half of his goals have have been scored in Italy (154), while 113 came in Ligue 1.

Ralf Rangnick questioned Manchester United's lack of physicality in their narrow 1-0 win over Norwich City and accepted his side have further room for improvement.

United made it back-to-back Premier League victories since Rangnick succeeded Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on a caretaker basis thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo's 75th-minute penalty.

Ronaldo scored United's 50th spot-kick away from home in the competition – only Liverpool (60) have netted more – after Max Aarons was adjudged to have pulled him down.

The Red Devils laboured for long periods at Carrow Road and required a couple of fine saves from David de Gea to deny Teemu Pukki and Ozan Kabak late on.

United only marginally edged possession (53 per cent) and the pass count (492 attempted to Norwich's 426), and Rangnick was not entirely pleased with his side's performance.

"It was an away game, a very physical, intense game," he told Sky Sports. "I've already told Dean [Smith] they played extremely well, they didn't at all play like a bottom team.

"They played like we did against Crystal Palace. In the first 15 minutes, we were struggling tactically, but then it was better. We didn't allow them many chances in the first half. 

"In the second half, we had a better body language up front but still allowed them too many chances and corners. In the end, it was De Gea that made sure it was a clean sheet.

"It's about intensity of the game, physicality, body language. On this kind of level, you need to be physically present, and this was not always the case. 

"In some situations it was the case, but not always. If you want to keep control of a game like this, you have to be physically present, and this was not the case in all positions."

United finished the match with an expected goals (xG) return of 2.04, scoring from one of their 13 shots, five of which were on target – the same number Norwich managed.

Rangnick added: "Some of our players are technical players, and today there was not so much space for technical solutions. 

"Then you need to be physically brave and compete on that kind of level with regard to physicality, and that was something we didn't do in all positions."

Asked if his side played with less physicality than was on show in last week's 1-0 win against Crystal Palace, Rangnick said: "That was not deliberate. 

"It was an away game today and the other team played much more aggressive than Palace did against us, therefore we need to raise our level of intensity in games like that.

"It's not only a question of individual players, it's how we play together as a team. But it's also a question of who wins balls, what about the second balls? 

"Do we get the second balls? As I said, in each position, it was not the same.

"You learn with every game, but at least we got the three points, another clean sheet. We need to improve, we need to get better, that's for sure."

Rangnick is just the second United manager to register a clean sheet in his first two league games in charge of the club after Ernest Mangnall in 1903.

Harry Maguire, who played a full part in both games and led the way against Norwich with a game-high six clearances, was happy to come away from Norfolk with three points.

"It was a tough game," he told Sky Sports. "We didn't play as well as we'd like to play. It was tough conditions to play in. But it's an important three points and a clean sheet for us.

"When you're playing week in week out, some performances aren't going to be at the highest. 

"We had to dig deep and stick together. We had to show spirit and we got three points. But we have to play better than that if we're going to achieve what we want to achieve.

"We've been very disappointed with our defensive record this year. David pulled off two or three big saves to keep a clean sheet. 

"They were top saves from a top keeper and that's what we expect. Two on the bounce we need to build on and go again on Tuesday."

Cristiano Ronaldo's controversial penalty gave Ralf Rangnick a second successive Premier League win as Manchester United claimed an unconvincing 1-0 victory at Norwich City.

United laboured for long periods at a sodden Carrow Road but were given a chance to break an unexpectedly long deadlock when Max Aarons was adjudged to have pulled down Ronaldo.

The Portugal forward stepped up to convert the spot-kick 15 minutes from time, his emphatic finish proving the difference despite a spirited effort from the league's bottom club.

United are fifth, level on points with fourth-placed West Ham but with an inferior goal difference, while Norwich remain three points adrift of safety.

Alex Telles saw a free-kick deflected onto the crossbar, but United struggled to break down the division's leakiest defence in the first half and were frustrated by Tim Krul in the Norwich goal.

Ronaldo was thwarted by a diving save from the Dutchman while Harry Maguire saw a header tipped over in the closing stages of the first 45 minutes.

Norwich provided more of an attacking threat in the second half and only a flying save from David de Gea prevented Teemu Pukki from firing the opener into the top-left corner.

But they were left aghast when Darren England pointed to the spot despite Ronaldo appearing to go down easily under contact from Aarons.

There was no doubt about Ronaldo's effort from 12 yards, which he lashed into the bottom-left corner – two stunning saves from De Gea to deny Ozan Kabak and the kind of United defending that was often lacking during Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's tenure ensuring it was enough for all three points.