A Jekyll and Hyde performance from Manchester United at the London Stadium on Saturday night as we were lucky to only be 0-1 at half-time before coming away with all three points.
Tomas Soucek scored the only goal of the first half as Declan Rice flicked a corner towards the backpost for the Czech midfielder to slide in front the goalline.
Sebastian Haller, Jarrod Bowen (twice) and Pablo Fornals all missed excellent opportunities for the hosts, who deserved to be ahead by more than one goal at the half.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer introduced Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford at the start of the second half. The duo played a hugely influential role in the turnaround.
First, Fernandes set up Paul Pogba for a 25-yard strike to equalise, before being involved in the build up to Mason Greenwood’s strike just minutes later.
Marcus Rashford sealed the game in the final 15 minutes when dinking the ball over Lukasz Fabianski from a one-on-one position.
Victory has moved us up to fourth in the Premier League table, two points behind leaders Tottenham Hotspur.
Here are my player ratings from West Ham United 1-3 Manchester United:
Dean Henderson 7 – Didn’t have a chance with the opening goal. Bailed out by the inside of a post earlier. Phenomenal ball down the wing to release Bruno Fernandes in the build up to our equaliser. Excellent save to deny an Aaron Cresswell free kick in the final 10 minutes.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka 7 – Made a fantastic last ditch tackle to deny Jarrod Bown a one-on-one at the end of the first half. Was nutmegged by Pablo Fornals whose effort struck the post. Otherwise a good defensive display.
Victor Lindelof 6 – West Ham had a number of excellent opportunities in the first half before our defence finally tightened up in the second.
Harry Maguire 6 – A couple of important interceptions and clearances to help us win.
Alex Telles 6 – Jarrod Bowen walked past Alex Telles with the ball at one point in the first half and generally tore us apart down our left side in the first half. The West Ham forward was quiet afterwards and substituted in the final 15 minutes. Alex Telles grabbed an assist in the second half.
Scott McTominay 5 – All over the place in the first half, conceding possession time and time again in his own half and being dribbled past by the opponents. Looked sharper in the second 45 minutes at least.
Donny van de Beek 5 – Couldn’t get on the ball much in the first half, and although he looked after the ball, Donny van de Beek failed to spark any attacks. Replaced at half-time.
Paul Pogba 7 – Cut a frustrated figure in the first half before a sublime 25-yard strike to equalise just after the hour. Paul Pogba looked more energetic after that and contributed to the win.
Mason Greenwood 6 – Didn’t realise he was on the pitch in the first half but scored an excellent solo effort to complete the turnaround midway through the second half.
Edinson Cavani 4 – Barely got a touch of the ball in the first half, let alone a shot to test Edinson Cavani. Benched at the break.
Anthony Martial 4 – Kept coming deep to collect the ball, making him ineffective up front. Gave away possession in own half that led to a good opportunity. Limped off with an apparent groin injury on the hour.
Substitutes
Bruno Fernandes (45 mins) 9 – Hugely influential second half introduction. Bruno Fernandes assisted the equaliser and then played a cheeky backheel to Alex Telles to set up our second. Excellent ball to play Rashford in one-on-one later on.
Marcus Rashford (45 mins) 9 – Lit the spark in the second half with an energetic display down the left. Setup a good opportunity for Scott McTominay 10 minutes into the second half. Hit the outside of the post with a good chance to kill the game off in the final 20 minutes before adding his name to the scoresheet five minutes later. Marcus Rashford’s runs in behind and counter attacks were too much for the West Ham defence to deal with.
Juan Mata (29 mins) 6 – Excellent first time through ball to assist Rashford’s goal. Juan Mata didn’t actually get on the ball much otherwise.
