Why Lisandro Martinez wasn't involved for Manchester United against Aston Villa

Erik ten Hag admits he considered bringing Lisandro Martinez on during Manchester United's goalless draw with Aston Villa but ultimately decided against it just in case Jonny Evans would need to be replaced.

Ten Hag made four changes from the side that drew with Porto, with Evans and Harry Maguire starting at centre-back instead of Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez.

The decision to start Evans proved to be a masterstroke, with the 36-year-old United's best performer on a day in which their defence impressed but their attack never looked like scoring.

Martinez was overlooked when United decided to replace both the injured Noussair Mazraoui and Maguire at half-time of the match, and after the draw, Ten Hag was asked why he freshened up the backline for the trip to Villa Park.

"Rotation, we have loads of games. We have to rotate the team," he told reporters. "The freshness, I think it was a good decision today. The performances from Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans, they were very solid. Matthijs de Ligt came in at half-time and was very solid."

Asked if he considered bringing Lisandro Martinez on at left-back and moving Dalot to right-back instead, Ten Hag replied: "Of course, you take everything into consideration. More reasons, you have to change the back four totally and Jonny Evans, I didn't know if he could come to the end and if he would have to subbed again. So I always consider, but for me, it was the best idea."