Rangnick responds to Keane: I can't force players to play

Ralf Rangnick reaffirmed his faith in Manchester United's medical department and insisted he could not select a player who felt unable to play after the high-profile absence of Cristiano Ronaldo in Sunday's defeat at Manchester City.

Rangnick confirmed Ronaldo, who did not travel with the United squad to the Etihad Stadium, was ruled out of the 187th Manchester derby with an injury to his hip flexor.

Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane questioned the veracity of Ronaldo's injury before kick-off, saying: "We talk about Ronaldo being a machine and very rarely getting injured… it doesn't add up to me."

Ronaldo's sister, Katia Aveiro, also appeared to question the 37-year-old's absence before the match by liking an Instagram post claiming he is not injured and was dropped by Rangnick.

Speaking after the United's chastening 4-1 defeat to City, Rangnick responded to Keane's claims.

"I have to believe my medical department," the United interim boss explained. "My doctor came to see me on Friday morning before training and told me Cristiano Ronaldo cannot train because of some problems with his hip flexor and the same was true on Saturday and that's why he couldn't be part of the squad."

Rangnick, who deployed Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba in a false-nine position in Ronaldo's absence, also faced questioning over the availability of striker Edinson Cavani.

The Uruguay international was missing for the sixth successive game, with Rangnick voicing his frustrations pre-match after being informed by the player he did not feel he could play. In his absence United delivered a toothless attacking display, failing to register a single effort in the second half.

"What does it help if I tell you it's frustrating?" Rangnick added. "It's just a