West Ham Must Take Encouragement From Manchester United Loss
The Hammers fell to a 1-0 defeat versus Manchester United at Old Trafford. Here are West Ham+ 19’s three takeaways from the match:
Marcus Rashford’s Goal: Individual Errors Cost West Ham
Marcus Rashford broke the deadlock with a powerful header in the 38th minute, out-jumping Thilo Kehrer at the far post to send the hosts into the interval ahead.
West Ham made two mistakes on Rashford’s opener, both caused by defenders not spotting and responding to danger quickly enough.
Tomáš Souček authored the first error. He didn’t spot Christian Eriksen’s movement towards the ball until it was too late, which allowed the Dane to control the throw-in and combine with Bruno Fernandes under relatively little pressure.
Kehrer’s lapse was more unfortunate. Rashford held a heavy momentum advantage when the cross was played, grounding his German marker and propelling his header into the net.
In both instances, the West Ham defence was too reactive.
Łukasz Fabiański’s Injury: Arise, Alphonse Areola
Łukasz Fabiański landed awkwardly on his knee in the 33rd minute and was replaced by Alphonse Areola as play resumed for the second half. He is now a major injury concern for David Moyes.
The 37-year-old has been one of West Ham’s most consistent players this season and entered the Manchester United match ranked fifth in the Premier League for goals saved above expected. His impressive form also poured cold water over the idea that Areola could take his spot in the team.
However, the Pole’s future is now unclear. If his injury is as serious as some fear, it could leave him restricted to the injury list for a while. Areola will start in the Europa Conference League in Bucharest on Thursday. It could be his final audition for the starter’s job.
Goals, Where Art Thou?
West Ham huffed and puffed but couldn’t blow Manchester United’s house down.
David de Gea made several impressive saves in the closing stages, including a long-range strike from Declan Rice in the final minute. Moments earlier, Harry Maguire made a key intervention to stop Jarrod Bowen finding twine.
It just wasn’t to be for the Hammers, who left it too late to throw the kitchen sink at their hosts — which is becoming a theme for them in away fixtures:
West Ham’s Last Five Away Games, Premier League:
L: 1-0 @ Manchester United
L: 1-0 @ Liverpool
D: 1-1 @ Southampton
L: 1-0 @ Everton
L: 2-1 @ Chelsea
West Ham have made progress since the start of the season, but they are yet to click offensively for a couple of reasons.
Injuries are a factor. Maxwell Cornet’s unavailability has sucked the pace out of the team’s transition play, while losing Lucas Paquetá to a shoulder injury has dampened their creativity in midfield.
However, managerial influence shouldn’t be overlooked. Moyes is often guilty of asking his team to play with the handbrake on and is prone to waiting until it’s too late to make attacking changes.
But, with that said, there are reasons to be optimistic about the Hammers.
They look like a different team to the one that was blanked by Brighton, Aston Villa, and Everton earlier in the season — with the squad in fine spirits ahead of the World Cup break.
West Ham’s performance at Old Trafford wasn’t perfect, but they should take confidence from the fact that they travel back to London knowing they left points on the table. They’re slowly turning the tides in the race for Europe.
Hi — I have a quick message before you close the tab. Unfortunately, I won’t be writing post-match analysis for Thursday’s Europa Conference League fixture versus FCSB. I’ll be in Finland watching hockey.
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