---
title: "West Ham United 1-1 Manchester United: Four things we learned"
canonical: "https://readmanutd.com/2015/02/08/west-ham-united-1-1-manchester-united-four-things-we-learned/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
section: "Man Utd Match Reports"
published: "2015-02-08T19:07:28Z"
modified: "2015-04-13T23:35:23Z"
---

# West Ham United 1-1 Manchester United: Four things we learned

In a game where we could have closed the gap on City, in second place, the team failed to display what is expected from both the fans and what is expected of them when they have the Manchester United crest on their shirt. We lacked many essentials that are required to win a Premier League game, and lacked the talent & charisma that is synonymous with a Manchester United team. Here are the four main points I noticed throughout the 90 minutes played.

First, one of the main things noticeable was that we lacked was movement. We have always had at least one striker on the pitch willing to sprint after every loose ball. However, in Radamel Falcao and Robin van Persie we have two very similar players, in the sense that they prefer to wait for the ball to come to them, rather than chasing the ball down and making it work for themselves. Just last season we had Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez who were both quick centre forwards who would chase the loose ball down, however we lack that pace up top with Van Persie and Falcao, and I believe they cannot both play together. It should be one or the other, with perhaps James Wilson as their partner.

Secondly, what has happened with Angel Di Maria, a player that offered so much when he first signed, scoring three goals almost immediately, bringing back the days we had Ronaldo running at the opposition, bringing back the excitement and ‘Wow’ factor. However in recent games, Di Maria has failed to impress on the pitch, often making frequent runs towards the opposition, where he eventually loses the ball, or having a shot that is either well over the bar or barely reaches the goal. Likewise today, he offered very little and often seemed disgruntled on the pitch. From this game, I would have to say he has to be dropped for a game, or a few games, and bring Ander Herrera in; whom I believe deserves to start every week.

Thirdly, marking, something which has seemingly been quite shaky and unstable in recent years, proved to be rather evident today. This was exemplified with the goal we conceded, when Kouyate (a make shift centre back) was able to juggle with the ball in the box and finally put the ball in the back of the net, leaving Jones looked bewildered and dazzled. This is obviously a big problem for our defence, the marking from our defenders during set pieces has been abysmal, with only Marcos Rojo really able to keep toe-to-toe with his man. Again, because of poor marking, we lost a vital three points that could have helped us push for second spot.

Finally, today it was made well aware from around nine of our players on the pitch that we lack chemistry and team motivation. We rarely clicked as a team and often looked as though the team consisted of eleven random players that were thrown together in the heat of the moment to play. Lack of communication, motivation and team work made us look very mediocre both on the attack and when defending. However, Marcos Rojo and Radamel Falcao were often caught clapping and motivating our team, which would make a large difference if all of our team were to help on another, pull together and work until they achieved what is expected of them.