Manchester United dropped yet more points in the Premier League, this time to West Ham United in a 1-0 defeat yesterday.
With Liverpool breathing down their necks in a race for a coveted Champions League spot, Erik ten Hag’s men seemed to have a position in Europe’s elite competition sewn up just a few weeks ago, however, that gap has narrowed significantly.
David De Gea was once again at fault for United, letting a weak shot from Said Benrahma escape through his grasp and settle in the back of the net. That horrendous error means the Spaniard has now madefourerrors leading to a goal this season.
The score remained 1-0 and it was yet another poor performance from the Old Trafford side, as it appears their gruelling fixture list has finally caught up with them.
It wasn’t just De Gea who was poor for the Red Devils during the loss, with Wout Weghorst once again failing to demonstrate the qualities which led Ten Hag to sign him on loan for the remainder of the campaign.
🎙️ Ian Wright: “With all due respect to Martial, if you have Wout Weghorst starting in front of you, you have a problem.” pic.twitter.com/k3Yth8lMsz
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) May 8, 2023
How did Wout Weghorst perform against West Ham?
The Dutchman was deployed in the number ten role, just behind Marcus Rashford, however, his performance was poor, and it’s clear he isn’t suited to an attacking midfield role,failingto score or assist across three games whilst playing in this position for the club.
The forward managed only28touches throughout, remarkably fewer than De Gea’s 48, which considering he was looked upon to link the play between midfield and attack, is a woeful return. To make matters worse, he only completed 16 passes.
The on-loan Burnley man failed to prove any sort of meaningful attacking contribution aside from the fact he succeeded withonedribble and took one shot. Considering the 30-year-old has scored onlyoncefor the club, it’s a wonder why he started against West Ham in the first place.
Winning justtwoduels from seven attempts and being dribbled past three times suggests the£35k-per-weekace was easily bullied, and this lightweight nature proves that Ten Hag mustn’t start him again during the final four matches of the campaign, especially when there is still so much to play for.
The player was described by talkSPORT pundit Jason Cundy as looking “like a fish up a tree” due to him being thrust among these world-class players at United and his performances since arriving in January have certainly justified that hilarious quip.