Manchester United 1-1 West Ham: Hosts into Champions League places as Hammers secure safety

Report and free highlights as West Ham confirm their Premier League safety with Old Trafford draw

By Charlotte Marsh

Thursday 23 July 2020 11:44, UK

Manchester United moved into the Champions League places after a 1-1 draw with West Ham, setting up a European showdown with Leicester on the final day of the season.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side had to come from behind to secure a point at Old Trafford and it was a bizarre incident that gave West Ham the lead at the end of the first half.

Paul Pogba gave away a penalty after raising his arms as a driven Declan Rice shot headed his way. His initial reaction looked like the ball had hit him in the face but a VAR review saw that it was a clear handball, with Michail Antonio (45+1) netting his sixth goal in three games from the penalty spot.

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said of the incident during co-commentary: "It's rubbish from him... You don't do that. You take it in your grid."

But West Ham's lead did not last long. On his 50th appearance for Manchester United - becoming the youngest player to reach the milestone since Ryan Giggs in 1992 - Mason Greenwood (51) levelled things up with a low drive just after the break.

The point takes Manchester United into third above Chelsea - who lost 5-3 to Liverpool later on Wednesday - and Leicester, with Sunday's final-day showdown at the King Power Stadium set to be a straight shootout for a Champions League spot and will be shown live on Sky Sports. For West Ham, they remain in 16th on 38 points and are safe from relegation.

How Man Utd rose into the top four

It was a sluggish first half but Manchester United went close in the opening few minutes. Anthony Martial tried his luck inside three minutes, but West Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski made a leaping, one-handed save to keep him out. Not long after, Greenwood's shot drove straight into the hands of Fabianski before Martial blazed wide after some neat build-up play.

Ole: We'll be 100-per-cent fresh for Foxes

West Ham had contained Manchester United well for much of the first half and began to test their opponents after the drinks' break. Going into the game, the Hammers had scored 10 goals from corners this season - the joint-highest with Liverpool and Everton - and they almost did so again around the half-hour mark. Mark Noble played a short corner to Jarrod Bowen, with the latter floating a cross into the middle. Angelo Ogbonna rose to meet the ball but, under pressure from Harry Maguire, he could only send his effort past the post.

Both sides tried to sneak a lead late in the first half. Marcus Rashford sent a thunderous effort goalwards, but forced a strong save from Fabianski before Greenwood's low drive was blocked by the legs of Ogbonna. At the other end, the in-form Antonio found a cross from Ben Johnson, getting the better of Victor Lindelof, but could only direct his header straight at David de Gea.

However, Antonio did score from the penalty spot after Pogba's indiscretion. Noble tapped a short free-kick to Rice, with the midfielder's thunderous strike initially appearing to hit Pogba in the face. But a VAR review showed that Pogba had, in fact, raised his arms as the ball came towards him, giving West Ham an easy penalty for handball. Antonio scored his first career penalty past De Gea, taking his tally to 10 for the season.

Team news

David de Gea started for Man Utd after an error-strewn performance in Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea led to increased scrutiny around the goalkeeper.
Elsewhere, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made four changes from the Chelsea game, with Paul Pogba, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood back in the XI along with a rare start for Timothy Fosu-Mensah. Eric Bailly, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Fred and Daniel James made way.
For West Ham, they named the same matchday squad as they did for a vital 3-1 win against Watford on Friday.

But their lead did not last long as Manchester United equalised six minutes after the restart. It was a neat passage of play between Pogba, Martial and Greenwood. The teenager received a slotted pass from Martial in the middle of five West Ham defenders before finishing low past Fabianski as Issa Diop struggled to get back.

As the half went on, West Ham had the best chances to score. Bowen's strike deflected off the foot of Brandon Williams, forcing De Gea to jump up and tip the effort over the crossbar. Just after, Rice was given acres of space to set up a shot and it was another fierce drive, but it just whistled past the top-left corner.

Odion Ighalo could have snatched a late winner after coming on as a late substitute. He picked up a neat cut-back from Greenwood but could only send his shot fizzing past the post as Manchester United ended the game on level terms.

Man of the match - Ben Johnson

A third Premier League start for the young right-back and he put in another impressive performance. He kept Rashford quiet for much of the evening - the striker only had one shot - and racked up some good numbers.

He had 74 touches, was involved in 13 duels, made five tackles and five clearances - all the highest for West Ham - with 29 of his 44 passes completed. If he continues in this vein, he could become a first-team regular next season.

What the managers said

Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: "We're third now and actually moved up the table. We came in at half-time and discussed winning the second half to see if it was enough to win the overall game. We started OK but in the last 10-15 minutes of the first half it became a bit frantic. We gave them the chance to counter-attack and gave some daft fouls away. The penalty made it hard for us second half.

"I've not seen the incident on telly but I've been told he's blocked his face so it's a penalty even if the ball was heading for the corner flag. He should've taken it in the mush but it's a natural reaction to protect your face.

"We've not been dealt the best of hands with recovery times in the last couple of weeks but that's because we've been in the FA Cup. That's how it is but the extra day now for Sunday will make us 100-per-cent fresh."

West Ham boss David Moyes: "It was a great performance as we were under a lot of pressure in the first half. Manchester United moved the ball really well at times. We managed to get a goal just before half-time which was a big difference to us.

"I thought we actually played better after United equalised. That was arguably our best spell in the whole game, but I'm really pleased. It's a difficult place to come and they've been playing really well recently. But we've been playing really well too and our players are in good form at the minute."

Opta stats

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United side are unbeaten in 13 Premier League games (W8 D5), which is now the Norwegian's best-ever run in the competition with the club and his best ever league run in his managerial career with a single club.
No teenager has ever scored more goals in a single season in all competitions for Man Utd than Mason Greenwood (17 - level with George Best in 1965-66, Brian Kidd in 1967-68 and Wayne Rooney in 2004-05).
West Ham's Michail Antonio has scored eight goals in the Premier League since the restart, the joint-most of any player alongside Raheem Sterling. He now has 10 Premier League goals this season - his best tally in a single campaign in the competition.

What's next?

The final day of the season sees Manchester United travel to Leicester, which will be a straight shootout for the Champions League places and shown live on Sky Sports. West Ham will host Aston Villa, with both games kicking off at 4pm.