Wayne Rooney, Anthony Martial out of Watford trip

Manchester United are facing a striking crisis with Wayne Rooney and Anthony Martial ruled out of Saturday’s Premier League trip to Watford.

Manager Louis van Gaal confirmed on Friday that Rooney, Martial and Marouane Fellaini will all be absent at Vicarage Road for the lunch-time kick-off in which a win for United would put them provisionally top of the table.

Martial is missing with the foot injury he sustained in France’s 2-0 defeat to England at Wembley on Tuesday night, although it is not thought to be a serious problem.

Captain and leading scorer Rooney reported back from that game with an illness and Fellaini has failed to recover from a calf injury which kept him out of Belgium’s friendly win over Italy last Friday.

Van Gaal said: “Rooney is ill, so we have a big problem, I think. Rooney was ill after the international break. I have only seen him the day after he played and then he was at home.”