Bruno Fernandes agreed with a point made by Roy Keane as he delivered a harsh verdict against West Ham for three of Manchester United’s stars.
Manchester United have lost yet another Premier League game, this time against West Ham. United have lost 17 times in the league this season and have fewer points from the last five fixtures than any of the relegated sides.
West Ham won 2-0 following goals from Thomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen. Former United right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka had the best game of any outfield player and assisted Bowen’s goal.
Despite not scoring, Ruben Amorim’s side had multiple chances but were denied by a man-of-the-match-worthy performance from West Ham keeper Alphonse Areola.
Following the match, United’s captain, Bruno Fernandes, highlighted the issues he saw with the team’s performance.
Fernades unhappy with United’s attack
In his post-match interview, Fernandes was critical of Manchester United’s attack, stating, “We need to be stronger and more eager to score goals and put balls into the box. If you create the chances, you have to try and bury them in.”
Fernandes and Amad created the most chances in the match, with nine between them, but none of them were capitalised upon. Fernandes didn’t feel, however, that a lack of agressiveness from United’s front three of Rasmus Højlund, Mason Mount, and Kobbie Mainoo caused the lack of goals.
“It’s difficult to explain. Everyone wants to score goals. It’s not been our season to get the goals in. We have to improve in that. We have to be much better. And we have to be more aggressive.”
Roy Keane recently criticised United for losing Premier League games and excusing it by saying the focus was on the Europa League.
Fernandes had the same criticism of United following the match, stating, “We had two games, we have one more game. We can’t just only focus on the Europa League final. We have to put maximum effort on every game. Any points in the Premier League at this moment for us will be massive.”
The issues that Fernandes highlighted have been prevalent all season and today’s result is endemic of a larger issue at the club.
United have been toothless season
The match against West Ham fully exposed Manchester United’s toothlessness this season. On average, United has missed one and a half big chances every game, but against West Ham, they missed 4. United led West Ham in almost every attacking stat, with five shots on target to their four and 20 total shots to their nine.
The game today was won and lost in the final third, with West Ham having far fewer chances but taking them better. Højlund had the most big chances in the match, with 1.31 xG, but he failed to convert any of his shots. West Ham as a team only managed 1.56 xG, further highlighting Højlund’s poor performance.
Read More: Ruben Amorim makes stern Manchester United sack claim after “embarrassing” West Ham defeat
It is clear that United are trying to rectify this issue ahead of next season with the majority of their rumoured transfer plans focussing on players in attack. A recent report listed four strikers who United were shortlisting to come into the squad and take Hojlund’s position.
The one silver lining for United ahead of their Europa League final with Tottenham is that they have been far more successful in attack when playing in Europe.
In Europe, United have scored 35 goals in 14 games with a 2.5 goal-a-game average compared to the Premier League, where they have averaged 1.1 goals a game. However, Fernades is right that this issue must be addressed in the Premier League before the next season.
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.