Analysis: West Ham United 2 Manchester United 2

Premier League, Wednesday 17^th August 2013

Manchester United drew 2-2 at Upton Park in a hard-fought game on Wednesday evening. Antonio Valencia and Robin van Persie scored the goals as United came from behind twice. Shinji Kagawa also deserves a significant mention for two good assists. Here’s the analysis:

Players didn’t settle in the system

United lined-up in a 4-1-4-1 shape, with Michael Carrick in front of the defence, Wayne Rooney and Phil Jones in front of him, Kagawa and Valencia wide, and Van Persie up top. The two most disappointing players on the pitch were arguably Rooney and Jones, quite possibly as a consequence of the formation. Jones, a defender by nature, looked largely uncomfortable in a forward midfield position, and offered little in attacking terms. Rooney, who one may expect to be more adept in the position than Jones, was equally if not more disappointing.

There were arguably three reasons for Rooney’s poor performance. Firstly, there is no escaping he simply wasn’t at his best. Despite brief glimpses of his quality, Rooney’s touch and movement was sloppy, and he wasn’t performing to his highest level. Secondly, Kagawa trod on Rooney’s toes, metaphorically speaking. The Japanese player has a tendency to cut inside a lot when playing on the left, and therefore often took up the space Rooney may have taken up in midfield, on what is a compact Upton Park pitch. The final reason for Rooney’s poor performance may have been a lack of directive. When playing in midfield this season he has either thrived in a free role with plenty of space (like against Stoke) or with specific instructions in a tighter game (like to combine with Valencia against Chelsea.) Rooney appeared to be lacking in specific instructions against West Ham, and was therefore unsettled on a crowded pitch.

Deep defence

There is certainly reason to suggest United defended too deep at Upton Park, thus inviting pressure. If any two players in the United squad can soak up pressure it’s certainly Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic. Both were however duly unsettled at times, and perhaps a more authoritative approach would’ve gained United more control. There is of course justification for a deep defence. Ferdinand and Vidic are certainly not the quickest duo around meaning a high line is risky, whilst the compact nature of the Upton Park pitch means press too high, and your midfielders get squeezed with no room to work.

Michael Carrick was assigned to work in between the lines of United’s central defenders and the rest of the team, which he did relatively well, but the abject performances of Rooney and Jones in front of him meant his work was often fruitless. Had United pressed higher up the pitch then they firstly they may have relieved some of the pressure off their defence, and secondly may have been able to resort to a two man midfield allowing for greater attacking presence and release on Wayne Rooney. Who knows whether it would’ve worked, but there was certainly room for improvement.

Going Forward

United worked hard for a point at Upton Park, and despite an average display, the draw was a decent result considering the fired-up nature of West Ham's performance. Shinji Kagawa showed some of his superb potential and technical quality with two assists, but gave another reminder of some of the wide potency United lose when he comes in field (arguably all too often.) David de Gea had a commanding game, whilst Valencia put in a long overdue good performance. If results go United’s way, they can win the title on Monday evening. The Reds will certainly be looking to return to winning ways at least when Aston Villa come to town.

Ratings

[4-1-4-1]: De Gea-7*, Rafael-6, Ferdinand-5, Vidic-6, Evra-7, Valencia-7, Carrick-7, Jones-5, Rooney-5, Kagawa-7, Van Persie-6

(Giggs-6, Hernandez-7)

*Man of the match