Man Utd players claim they have been banned from interviews by club after Martinez outburst

Manchester United players claimed they had been gagged by the club following Sunday's 1-1 draw at Leeds United. It is common for United players to speak to members of the written press in the mixed zone after games, especially after a positive performance.

However, after the match at Elland Road, despite being asked by reporters to stop, Bruno Fernandes and Matheus Cunha said they weren't allowed to speak.

It follows Lisandro Martinez's explosive TV interview after United's 2-0 Champions League defeat to Atletico Madrid, in which he tore into the club's hierarchy, including director of football Jason Wilcox, for the club's perceived lack of summer transfer business.

Martinez, who was fined for the outburst, subsequently apologised after clear-the-air talks with the club and played against Leeds. He received support from travelling United fans, who chanted "Argentina, Argentina, Argentina" from the away section, only to have to come off at half-time with an injury.

The silence from United players after the Leeds game suggests they have been asked by the club not to speak for fear of more Martinez-style tirades. However, it is understood that there had been no direct order from the club's media team for players to refrain from engaging with written reporters after the match.

Harry Maguire spoke to the club's official website after the game. He said: "You can't question the togetherness, the spirit and the fight. This is a tough place to come. Leeds have been flying in the league.

Make sure you don't miss the best Man Utd coverage by making the Daily Mirror one of your Google preferred sources.

"We can be better. We have to show more quality with the ball. When you come to places like this, you can't be beaten on set-plays and we conceded a set-play which got them back in the game.

"Throughout, we felt comfortable in our shape. They didn't create too many chances. To concede a set-piece after half-time is disappointing. We had to dig in. We got a foothold at about 70 minutes and probably looked the more likely to go and win it, but a draw is probably fair."

Meanwhile, Michael Carrick claims the performance felt like a "fresh start." The United boss said: "We're not getting too carried away because we haven't won the game. I think if you keep doing the right things for the right reasons, then you get what you deserve in the end."

The draw extended United's winless Premier League run to five matches – their only win was against newly-promoted Ipswich in August – while they have won just two of their 10 games in all competitions.

Not since the end of the 2018-19 season have United gone six games in all competitions without a win and it is 40 years since they won only one of their first seven top-flight games at the start of a season.