Premier League

They drag him to Hell, West Ham beat United and overtake them in the Premier

With the option of placing themselves on the edge of the continental places, both West Ham and Manchester United needed the three points to forget their erratic series of results in recent days.

By Liam Styles

23/12/2023, 02:43 PM

With the option of placing themselves on the edge of the continental places, both West Ham and Manchester United needed the three points to forget their erratic series of results in recent days.

Manchester United, immersed in a rollercoaster of irregular results, failed again after losing 2-0 against West Ham, which with the goals from Bowen and Kudus fueled the crisis of results for the Red Devils, unable to look out for the European places in the Premier League after accumulating only one victory in their last five games. The number of casualties they face day after day does not help United. Especially in the center of defense.

Against West Ham, they were without five of their centre-backs and Ten Hag gave the debut of the young Kambwala, who accompanied the veteran Evans to form the duo in charge of guarding Bowen, the most inspired man up front this season in the London team. Ten Hag, brave with Kambwala's bet, insisted on the substitution of Martial and Rashford, who were once again left out of the starting eleven and there are already a few this season.

With this script, during the first half hour the London Stadium suffered a complete blackout of ideas. Only Emerson Palmieri tried with a shot that Oanana saved. Nothing else. Daring did not shine on either side. The midfield monopolized almost all the minutes and only in the last stretch, with the insistence of Garnacho, did the duel acquire a certain rhythm. The Argentine attacker woke up United, but failed in the last meters. The light went out when it was time to finish the job. The clearest, a one-on-one against Areola that ended with a saving save by the West Ham goalkeeper.

The second half clarified West Ham's ideas, as they took to the field determined to respond to the hegemony that their rival monopolized in the last quarter of the first act. He came out strong and was able to score early with a header from Bowen to which Onana responded with a great stretch that was vital for United. The intervention of the Cameroonian goalkeeper prevented a goal that would have been too heavy for his teammates, who reacted in the last half hour to equalize the duel in the final stretch.

The outcome of the story

However, Manchester United's growth spurt ended as soon as the two men who make the most football at West Ham connected. Paquetá and Bowen met in the 72nd minute to break the game. The first, with the outside, filtered to the second a precise and beautiful pass between the lines that the West Ham forward did not waste. Bowen beat Onana and raised his goal tally in the Premier to eleven. He equaled Salah and is only ahead of Haaland, who leads the standings with fourteen goals.

United had just over twenty minutes left to counter Bowen's success and prevent West Ham from overtaking them in the standings. He sank and Kudus finished the job with a precise shot after an error by Mainoo in the release of the ball that fueled the crisis of poor results for the Ten Hag team, unable to wake up in time to avoid signing another inconsequential season. Opposite, West Ham smiled after reaching sixth place, which smells like Europe.
 

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