United looking to extend outstanding record in crucial match against old rivals

Manchester United welcome West Ham United to Old Trafford in the first Premier League match of December for the Red Devils. The first game between the two sides took place in 1911, when West Ham defeated Manchester United 1-2 in the FA Cup. In history, they have faced each other 156 times. Manchester United have won 74 times and drawn 32 times. The Hammers have come out on top on 50 occasions. Man United record vs West Ham OpponentWinsDrawsLossesTotal matches West Ham743250156 Source: 11v11.com Here are three storylines to get the blood racing before the match this evening. Poor run of form vs Hammers The Red Devils were very poor last year against the Hammers. They were defeated 1-2 in Erik ten Hag’s last game in charge in October 2024. They were also beaten 0-2 at Old Trafford under Ruben Amorim in May. Manchester United also went down 0-1 and 0-2 in May and December 2023. The only recent win came in February 2024, a 3-0 victory at Old Trafford. Before this stretch of games, they had a stellar record, winning 19, drawing six and losing three of the previous 28 matches. United looking to avoid 90-year record In spite of the poor recent form against West Ham, most of it has occurred away from home. Manchester United will be looking to avoid defeat versus the Hammers to avoid losing consecutive games at Old Trafford to the East Londoners for the first time since 1934. In fact, May’s victory saw an end to a 16-match undefeated run at home against Nuno Espírito Santo’s team. Midweek joy The Red Devils are accustomed to playing European football during the midweek. Nonetheless, a poor season last year means that they have most midweeks free this season. Interestingly, the BBC report that, “Manchester United are unbeaten in their last 17 midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) Premier League home games, winning 14 and drawing three.” In fact, they have won the last eight in a row. Their last defeat was against Liverpool in May 2021, when they crashed to a 2-4 loss to their arch-rivals. Featured image Alex Livesey 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 Alex Browne Alex is a huge Manchester United fan, inspired by greats of his homeland such as George Best, Harry Gregg and Norman Whiteside. Alex has a Master’s degree from Queen’s University Belfast and La Universitat Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona, Spain. Having lived in the country since 2011, Alex is The Peoples Person’s Spanish football expert and is fluent in both Spanish and Catalan. He dreams of witnessing a United captain triumphantly hoisting the Premier League and Champions League trophy in the air once more.