“It shouldn’t be like this”: United hero does not hold back in stinging criticism of teammates following West Ham draw

It was once again a case of one step forward, two steps back as Manchester United were held to a disappointing 1-1 draw by West Ham United at Old Trafford on Thursday. It was the hosts who took a deserved lead in the second half through Diogo Dalot. Till that point, they had dominated possession and created the most chances while hardly allowing the opposition time and space in the final third. And instead of trying to double their advantage, Ruben Amorim decided to play safe and made defensive changes. That meant the Hammers gained a foothold in the contest and eventually equalised in the 83rd minute. Goalscorer Dalot was livid with the two points dropped. After the game, he told Sky Sports, “We are disappointed. At 1-0 with 30 minutes to go we have to control the game more, especially at Old Trafford. Diogo Dalot livid with late collapse “We cannot get as anxious as we got after the goal. Maybe we got sloppy with the ball possession. We had the game there. We think it is down to us rather than credit to West Ham.” Following Chelsea’ loss, the Red Devils had the chance to go fifth. It was baffling to see the team lose all control following their goal and the Portugal international agreed. “It’s the solution that we need to find. It can be various things. It shouldn’t be like this because you are fighting 60 minutes to score a goal and then when it happens you should keep doing the same things, even more controlling, longer possession so we can be dominant. StatisticValue Goals1 Expected goals (xG)0.28 Assists0 Expected assists (xA)0.02 Key passes0 Crosses (accurate)2 (0) Accurate passes35/46 (76%) Passes in opposition half (acc.)24/30 (80%) Passes in own half (acc.)11/16 (69%) Long balls (accurate)2/4 (50%) Total shots1 Expected goals on target (xGOT)0.61 Shots on target1 Shots blocked0 Touches73 Unsuccessful touches1 Dribbles (successful)1 (1) Possession lost18 Tackles (won)0 (0) Interceptions2 Clearances0 Blocked shots0 Recoveries3 Ground duels (won)2 (1) Aerial duels (won)5 (1) Dribbled past1 match stats from sofascore “Especially the play that goes to the corner that we conceded – that’s the kind of play that we need to avoid, especially against teams that are good on the counter. “And we knew today that they were going to be looking for counter-attacks and set plays and unfortunately we couldn’t hold the result but in the end we have to look to ourselves.” The draw meant the 20-time English league champions are eighth in the table, six points adrift of Manchester City in second place. A loss against 10-men of Everton and now, two points dropped against West Ham, who are in the relegation zone, shows how inconsistent this team really is. Scoring after more than a year “We are in the time of the year where you cannot drop too many points or else the distance to the top will be even higher. “The season as it is means that the distances are short but we will quickly get to a time where everyone is spreading each other. We want to be there and be in the top four or five. Today we had a good chance and that is why the disappointment is even bigger.” The ex-Porto ace did manage to get on the scoresheet, his first in the Premier League May 2024. “Every time you get the opportunity to score a goal for a club like this is amazing, especially at the Stretford End. But I would change it for the three points.” Now, for United to respond when they take on bottom of the barrel Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday. Feature image Justin Setterfield via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Ayantan Chowdhury After failing to become a professional footballer, Ayantan switched to the next best thing: writing about the greatest football club in the world. He has extensive sports journalism experience, having worked for over 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25