Gary Neville tells Erik ten Hag the only role Lisandro Martinez can play in Manchester United defence

Gary Neville is not convinced Lisandro Martinez can play in central defence in a back four after being tormented in Manchester United’s defeat to Brentford on Saturday.

The Argentine, a £56.7million signing from Ajax, was bullied at times by Ivan Toney and easily out-jumped by Ben Mee on a set-piece before being hauled off at half-time with United four goals down.

Martinez’s height – he stands at just 5ft 9in – was flagged as a potential issue before he moved to the Premier League and Brentford boss Thomas Frank admitted afterwards it was something they deliberately targeted.

United legend Neville, who was also on the short side for a centre-back before moving to right-back, feels Martinez will continue to be targeted and feels the only solution is to play with a back three – or remove him from the defence altogether.

Asked if there was any role in the defence that Martinez would be capable of playing, Neville told Sky Sports: ‘Maybe on the left in a back three – that could potentially work.

‘Maybe playing in midfield, because we know he can do that. I think he’s got tenacity and, to be fair, I wouldn’t judge him at all at this moment in time.

‘But to say he could play in a back four away at Brentford against Toney and [Bryan] Mbeumo – he physically can’t compete with them.

‘I couldn’t when I was playing as a centre-back when I was younger, and I thought I was a decent centre-back who knew my position and knew the game. But I couldn’t do it because Gary Pallister had to keep coming over to swap with me.

‘When I saw him [Martinez] swapping with [Harry] Maguire in the first half at the long throws, it reminded me of Pally who used to swap with me.

‘If you’re having to swap positions at centre-back to compensate for the other one