West Ham vs Manchester United: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s problems deepen with embarrassing defeat

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s problems deepened at the London Stadium as a poor Manchester United side slipped to a 2-0 defeat by West Ham United. Manuel Pellegrini’s team were far from sparkling but Andriy Yarmolenko’s smartly-taken goal on the stroke of half-time and Aaron Cresswell’s 84th minute free kick accurately reflected the difference between the sides. United looked like one of those clubs destined to be mired in the bottom half of the table.

This was not a thrilling encounter. It took almost 20 minutes for either side to have a shot on goal. When it eventually came it was a tame Yarmolenko effort that David De Gea accepted with ease.

That seemed to shock United into activity. They had a brief period of pressure. Marcus Rashford broke free but Ryan Fredericks got back to kill the danger. There was a flurry of corners, none of which disturbed the home defence very much. It was all very pedestrian.

Manchester City and Liverpool play with pace but it is not the speed of the runners that does the damage, it is the way these teams zip the ball around the pitch. One-touch football drags opponents out of their shape and comfort zone. Both sets of players at the London Stadium were taking two, three or four touches. It made for dull fare.

On the one occasion in the first half that West Ham broke with any conviction, Mark Noble sent a first-time pass down the line for Pablo Fornals. The winger slowed down as he approached the ball, anticipating a challenge from Aaron Wan-Bissaka. The full back got there first. Fornals might have taken too long to consider his options or he may not have fancied the contact. Either way, a braver player could have caused United serious problems.

Just as the crowd were nodding off, West Ham woke up. It looked like Noble had found a blind alley down the left wing in the 44th minute but the United defence allowed the 32-year-old to pirouette on the edge of the box and find a new avenue of attack. Felipe Anderson was waiting some 25 yards out and the Brazilian sent in a crisp chip that found Yarmolenko in the area. The striker took a touch to take him away from Harry Maguire and shot low into the net. It was an uplifting way to end a downbeat first half.

United could have levelled things immediately after the break when Juan Mata turned a Andreas Pereira cross wide. Mata has many admirers because of his intelligence and ability but he is a player of fleeting impact. His pass to Rashford looked good but lacked the velocity and precision to free the striker. United were creating little.

It got worse for Solskjaer just before the hour when Rashford pulled up clutching his hamstring. The England striker limped off, replaced by Jesse Lingard. If the 26-year-old was frustrated sitting on the bench, his mood would get no better. Within minutes he was gesticulating in exasperation as another United move broke down deep in the midfield while Lingard was in space.

West Ham could have doubled their lead shortly after Rashford’s exit when Yarmolenko played in Anderson but De Gea blocked the shot at the near post.

Again United posed a fleeting threat. Maguire won a header in the area but Scott McTominay’s shot was saved by Lukasz Fabianski. Solskjaer’s side lacked incisiveness. Even when it appeared there might be an opportunity they were never quite precise enough to make it count. It looked like Lingard had set Daniel James free but the pass was just heavy enough to allow Fabianski to get to the ball first. The rebound fell to Lingard but he was quickly crowded out.

The killer blow came with six minutes left. Ashley Young brought down Noble 25 yards out and Cresswell took responsibility. The full back curled the ball into the top corner with De Gea flailing. United’s players looked embarrassed. If they were not, they should have been.