Manchester United draw West Ham to secure second place
By Wyatt Miner
Earlier in the season, Manchester United thrashed their London opponents, West Ham United. In their recent match up, the two clubs could not find the net.
For those that did not watch the match, they did not miss much. The game was intense in the first half with several attacking chances for both sides. While many expected West Ham to fall to Manchester United, the club put up a good fight against a second place United squad.
As far as the starting line up goes, Mourinho made a shock decision to start Luke Shaw over Ashley Young, and start Scott McTominay over Nemanja Matic. Mourinho’s decision to alter the lineup made little affect on the outcome over the match. Perhaps, Mourinho chose to start those players so they could make another impact before they play for their countries.
While the game appeared to be evenly matched, Manchester United dominated in possession. For instance, the Red Devils had 56% possession, and West Ham had 44% possession. Additionally, United dominated in shots, shots on goal, and corner kicks. With the amount of chances Manchester United had, they should have capitalized on their chances.
While the game proved to be uneventful for the Red Devils, David de Gea secured the “Golden Glove” award for having the most shutouts of any keeper. The Spaniard secured a grand total of eighteen clean sheets. For a very successful season, de Gea deserves this award.
As previously mentioned, the game proved to be uneventful. However, United still had good chances on the goal.
For example, McTominay ripped a shot that appeared to be going in, but it drifted just wide of the post. Normally, McTominay does not send shots towards the goal, but this could be a sign of McTominay evolving as a player.
In addition to McTominay’s chance, Jesse Lingard had a few good chances on the goal. The English midfielder is known for his creative abilities, as well as his occasional outrageous goals. In the West Ham match, he sent a shot rocketing towards the goal, and the West Ham keeper could only parry it out of play.
Also, Shaw surprised a few when the ball fell to his feet, and he rocketed a shot off of the post. After not appearing at all for most of the season, Shaw made an impression with his shot at goal.
Next: Can Paul Pogba maintain good form?
Manchester United secured a second place finish in the Premier League with their draw with West Ham United. Obviously, Mourinho would have wanted the title, but this is Manchester United’s most successful season since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson. Now, United gear up for their next match with Watford on May 13th.