West Ham player ratings v Manchester United: Playmaker flops
By Editor Wayne Veysey
Football Insider rates the West Ham players in their 2-0 defeat against Manchester United in Wednesday’s League Cup quarter-final clash at Old Trafford.
Adrian 6 – Made a fine double save from Ibrahimovic early in the first half and could do little to keep out the goals.
Winston Reid 6 – Defended solidly and used the ball sensibly.
Cheikhou Kouyate 5 – Handed a new role in a back three, the midfielder struggled to deal with the vibrant United attackers.
Angelo Ogbanna 4 – Made some interceptions but guilty of giving too much space to the visitors.
Michail Antonio 5 – A threat going forward but his lack of defensive awareness stuck out like a sore thumb. Made an awful hash of attempting to haul back Ibrahimovic for the opener. Added injury to insult when he limped off early in the second half.
Aaron Cresswell 7 – Had been one of the Hammers’ better performers before he sparked more full-back worries by limping off just before half-time.
Pedro Obiang 7 – Battled hard and showed tremendous footwork to put Payet in the clear in the build-up to the West Ham equaliser.
Edmilson Fernandes 4 – Looked out of place in such elite company and can expected to be sidelined when Mark Noble returns at the weekend.
Sofiane Feghouli 5 – Did little to suggest he should be a more regular starter.
Dimitri Payet 5 – Flitted in and out of the game. Played a key role in the opener as David de Gea could not hold on to his long-range effort but loses marks with a horrible pass from deep in his team’s third that United seized upon to score their second goal. The playmaker was withdrawn after 76 minutes.
Ashley Fletcher 7 – Showed his former club what they were missing by demonstrating a striker’s instinct to pounce on De Gea’s error to make it 1-1 and net for the first time for West Ham.
SUBS
Arthur Masuaku (for Cresswell 45mins) – 4
Manuel Lanzini (for Antonio 57mins) – 6
Simone Zaza (for Payet 76mins) – 6
In other West Ham news, the club are planning to make a mega bid for a Premier League player.