West Ham United v Manchester United Live Commentary & Result, 7/5/23, Premier League

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	PTS	Form
1	MCI Manchester City	38	28	5	5	94	33	+61	89	L D W W W
2	ARS Arsenal	38	26	6	6	88	43	+45	84	W L L W W
3	MUN Manchester United	38	23	6	9	58	43	+15	75	W W W W L
4	NEW Newcastle United	38	19	14	5	68	33	+35	71	D D W D L
5	LIV Liverpool	38	19	10	9	75	47	+28	67	D D W W W
6	BHA Brighton & Hove Albion	38	18	8	12	72	53	+19	62	L D W L W
7	AVL Aston Villa	38	18	7	13	51	46	+5	61	W D W L L
8	TOT Tottenham Hotspur	38	18	6	14	70	63	+7	60	W L L W L
9	BRE Brentford	38	15	14	9	58	46	+12	59	W W W L W
10	FUL Fulham	38	15	7	16	55	53	+2	52	L D W W L
11	CRY Crystal Palace	38	11	12	15	40	49	-9	45	D D W L W
12	CHE Chelsea	38	11	11	16	38	47	-9	44	D L L D W
13	WOL Wolverhampton Wanderers	38	11	8	19	31	58	-27	41	L D L W L
14	WHU West Ham United	38	11	7	20	42	55	-13	40	L W L W L
15	BOU AFC Bournemouth	38	11	6	21	37	71	-34	39	L L L L W
16	NFO Nottingham Forest	38	9	11	18	38	68	-30	38	D W D W L
17	EVE Everton	38	8	12	18	34	57	-23	36	W D L W D
18	LEI Leicester City	38	9	7	22	51	68	-17	34	W D L L D
19	LEE Leeds United	38	7	10	21	48	78	-30	31	L L D L L
20	SOU Southampton	38	6	7	25	36	73	-37	25	D L L L L

That's all from us, we hope you enjoyed the game. Until next time, it's goodbye for now.

Despite not moving to a higher position in the table, West Ham now have a seven-point cushion above the bottom three with three matches left to play, and would be able to climb as high as 12th with victory in their next game against London rivals Brentford. Manchester United, on the other hand, miss the chance to consolidate their top-four place and remain fourth, just a point above Liverpool in fifth with a game in hand. A crucial game at both ends of the table ends in favour of the side nearer the bottom, but there is still plenty that can change before the final day of the season rolls around on May 28.

Declan Rice must have covered every single blade of grass inside the London Stadium, putting in a complete performance to lead West Ham to victory. Having more touches, attempted and accurate passes than any of his team-mates, Rice made seven final-third entries and completed 14 passes in this area of the pitch. He also won seven of his nine duels, including all four of his dribbles, and won possession a game-high 13 times via two tackles and four interceptions. Three of these came inside the visitors' own defensive third, as Rice proved to be a constant nuisance for a Manchester United side, who struggled to compete with West Ham's intensity for the entire match.

It's all over, and that fortunate first-half strike from Benrahma proves to be the difference! The Hammers began the second period at frenetic pace, and came close to doubling their lead on several occasions through Soucek, Paqueta and Antonio. The referee's whistle and linesman's flag also denied Bowen and Soucek from sealing the victory, before United pushed unsuccessfully for a late equaliser. Rashford, Wan-Bissaka and Martial all called Fabianski into action, but a rock-solid Hammers defence held firm to retain their first-half lead. Three huge points for West Ham all but guarantees their place in the Premier League for next season, while United's top-four race takes a twist in the wrong direction.

90' + 10' FULL-TIME: WEST HAM 1-0 MANCHESTER UNITED

Emerson

A. Cresswell

90' + 8' Cresswell is off in another late West Ham change, with the industrious left-back's berth taken by Emerson.

90' + 8' Fernandes' crossing space on the right edge is quickly closed by Fornals, but the United captain steps inside his challenge to shoot. However, his left-footed shot is always rising as it sails over the bar, and the locals celebrate that miss like it's a West Ham goal.

90' + 7' Shaw wins a header from Fernandes' cross which allows Rashford to keep possession for United, but Cresswell gets in the way to block his cross behind for another corner.

B. Johnson

M. Antonio

90' + 5' Antonio also comes off having been exceptional in every department for the Hammers, and academy product Johnson is on to further boost their defensive stocks.

F. Downes

Lucas Paquetá

90' + 5' Moyes makes two late changes for the hosts, with Downes replacing the ever-impressive Paqueta for the last few moments of this game.

90' + 4' Shaw fires a late cross into the box with Fernandes the target, but pressure from Ogbonna means he can't connect cleanly with his header and Cresswell hammers the ball clear.

90' + 2' Fernandes' corner is whipped in at searing pace, but Martial mis-times his header and sends the ball glancing across the face, allowing West Ham to recover and clear.

90' + 1' SAVED!!! Martial and Rashford combine on the edge of West Ham's box for the former to race into the clear, but the Frenchman's near post shot is parried beyond it by Fabianski.

90' Just the EIGHT added minutes to play at the London Stadium, largely owing to that pair of head injuries, but that's not much of a reprieve for an increasingly nervy home crowd here.

89' A cross from the right isn't dealt with properly by Casemiro, sparking a scramble for the ball in United's box. Bowen and Antonio both scrap and fight for the ball, but the visitors come up with it and Fred clears his lines.

Fred

T. Malacia

88' Malacia also comes off for the visitors, and Fred is introduced in a change that will likely see a late switch to a more attacking formation as the Red Devils chase the game.

88' Rice is there again for West Ham to cut out Dalot's clearance, and he bursts into the box. He crosses from the byline, but Dalot recovers to deflect the ball into the side netting and behind for a corner to the hosts.

Pablo Fornals

S. Benrahma

87' West Ham make their first change of the match, as the sole goalscorer Benrahma is withdrawn for Fornals to see out proceedings.

Diogo Dalot

A. Wan-Bissaka

87' Wan-Bissaka comes off for United despite appearing to have shaken off that head knock, and Diogo Dalot will replace the right-back for the last few minutes.

86' Fernandes' cross finds Casemiro at the far post, but his looping header doesn't trouble Fabianski who is able to watch it drop wide of his post.

86' Paqueta beats Lindelof to a high ball before surging clear on the break for West Ham, but Shaw slides in to dispossess the midfielder before he can release Antonio ahead of him.

84' Moyes is winless in his last 10 Premier League games against former employers United, losing eight including the last five in a row. His last win against them was with Everton in August 2012, but he's in a good position to record his first victory in over a decade here.

82' Both players are finally back on their feet having completed the necessary concussion checks, and after Soucek and Wan-Bissaka are each cleared to continue playing, we're back underway.

80' The medical buggy is out on the pitch, and with both Wan-Bissaka and Soucek still down, we may be seeing a stretcher required for both players.

78' CHANCE! Sabitzer's cross from the short corner is headed back across goal by Lindelof, but Fabianski comes out to punch, denying Wan-Bissaka a free header in the process, before being clattered by the United right-back. Wan-Bissaka stays down, as does Soucek whose head got caught in the middle of that challenge.

77' SAVED! Fernandes' ball into the box is flicked on by Sabitzer into the path of Rashford, whose early shot from the right is tipped over the bar by Fabianski!

76' Paqueta has been involved in four goals in his last four home games for West Ham in all competitions with two goals and assists apiece, with this figure double the amount he had in his first 16 appearances at the London Stadium.

J. Sancho

Antony

74' Antony also comes off having been anonymous in this half compared to the first, and Sancho will replace the Brazilian for the final stages of this game.

M. Sabitzer

C. Eriksen

74' Ten Hag makes further changes for United, as Eriksen is replaced in midfield by January signing Sabitzer.

73' BALL IN THE NET!! The Hammers are denied a second! A Cresswell corner is palmed out of the goalmouth by De Gea, but that doesn't put West Ham off. They patiently build their chance and Paqueta's superb cross finds Soucek, who crashes a bullet header off the near post and into the back of the net! The flag's up though, with Soucek a fraction offside, and the Czech midfielder has his head in his hands knowing that he didn't need to be.

72' Rice makes a brilliant run down the left wing and cuts inside to shoot from the edge of the box, but Antony has tracked back and deflects the West Ham captain's effort behind for a corner.

70' Casemiro's teasing cross into the area is headed away strongly by Kehrer, and Bowen shows supreme strength to hold the ball up before the German defender can clear his lines for the Hammers.

68' West Ham's 13 attempts on goal in this match has already surpassed their average of 12.3 in this season's Premier League, yet they still lead by just a solitary goal as we approach the final 20 minutes.

66' WIDE!!! Cresswell hangs up a cross from the left, which Paqueta brings down on the opposite side. With options aplenty joining him in the area, the Brazilian steps onto his left foot and shoots goalwards, but his attempt takes a nick off a team-mate and sails wide for a goal kick.

65' CHANCE! Kehrer's free-kick is swung in from deep but evades everyone before being kept in play by Benrahma. His cross back into the area finds the head of Antonio, but Lindelof is there to nod his effort off the line and Eriksen hacks the ball clear.

A. Wan-Bissaka

Yellow Card

64' A glorious turn from Antonio allows the Jamaica forward to leave two United players in the dust. He charges over halfway and into open space, before being cut down from behind by Wan-Bissaka, who picks up the most textbook of yellow cards you'll ever see.

62' WIDE! Antonio and Paqueta keep the ball well down the left, with the latter skipping beyond Eriksen to cross from the byline. The ball floats high before landing on the right foot of Soucek, whose volley from a tight angle lashes into the side netting.

60' WIDE! Bowen leads the Hammers' counter-attack and engages three defenders before teeing up Paqueta. He shoots from the edge of the box, but his effort swerves away from the target and flashes wide of De Gea's right post!

59' CHANCE! A cross from Cresswell is headed away to Benrahma, who slips a clever pass through to Rice. He charges right up to the byline and cuts the ball back across the face of goal, but no-one in a claret shirt can get there and Rashford clears for the visitors.

A. Martial

W. Weghorst

57' Weghorst comes off in the first of Erik ten Hag's changes, and Martial will come on to lead the line for United.

56' SAVED!! Wan-Bissaka darts down the right flank and picks out Weghorst with a low pass to the edge of the box. The Netherlands striker fires his first-time effort towards goal, but the curling shot is well held by Fabianski for West Ham!

54' Having already been denied what appeared to be a stonewall penalty in the first half, the home crowd is unsurprisingly furious at another borderline decision going against them. Perhaps on another day, they would be 3-0 up, but the Hammers are still well on top at the moment with their one-goal lead.

52' BALL IN THE NET!!! A long throw from the Hammers is nodded on at the near post by Soucek. De Gea flaps at the ball and can only push it back into the danger area, and Bowen scoops an awkward shot into the net! The referee points towards the centre spot, but not for a goal - it's a free-kick to United after he judges that the goalkeeper was impeded!

51' Wan-Bissaka cuts the ball back towards Antony from the byline, and the Brazilian attempts to feed Fernandes in the box. The ball ricochets back to Antony, whose first-time strike is blocked by a defender and West Ham set off on the break.

49' SAVED!! United head clear from a West Ham corner, but Benrahma returns serve with a shot from distance. A Wan-Bissaka block falls kindly for Soucek, whose half-volley from a tight angle is beaten away from the near post by De Gea.

48' West Ham have dropped 35 points from winning positions against United in the Premier League, more than they have against any other side. Their record when leading against the Red Devils in the competition is seven wins, seven draws and seven defeats.

46' Confusion between De Gea and Shaw from a goal kick allows Antonio to dispossess the latter before teeing up Bowen, but his attempt from the edge of the area is blocked by Lindelof.

46' Antonio resumes proceedings for West Ham, and we're back underway in east London!

The players return ahead of the second half, and can the visitors profit from one of their many chances to find their way back into this game?

Antony has been incredibly lively down the right for United, looking to carve out chances at every opportunity and popping up all over the final third. The Brazilian's three attempts on goal have generated just 0.15 xG so far though, while he's created three big chances from 14 passes in the final third. Antony has also won five of his seven duels, including three successful dribbles, also winning possession on three occasions with one tackle, interception, and the winning of a free-kick.

The Hammers lead at the break, having profited from a woeful error on United's part. De Gea's poor attempt at saving Benrahma's shot has them trailing in a game they have had much more of than the hosts, with efforts from Fernandes, Antony and Rashford all going close. But close hasn't been good enough for the visitors, who are yet to register a shot on target and have struggled to break down West Ham's robust defensive. Benrahma drew a save from De Gea late in the half, and the Hammers will take great confidence from a solid first-half showing that could well have been 2-0 after a potential penalty for Lindelof's handball wasn't given.

45' + 3' HALF-TIME: WEST HAM 1-0 MANCHESTER UNITED

45' + 2' SAVED! Back come United up the other end of the field as Eriksen skips beyond Kehrer. He shoots from close range, but the ball takes a deflection off the West Ham defender and is straight into Fabianski's gloves.

45' + 1' SAVED!!! Paqueta makes his way up the right and slips Benrahma in with a peach of a pass, and the Algerian's first-time shot is parried by De Gea getting low down to his left. Benrahma's volleyed rebound back into the middle appears to strike the hand of Lindelof, but there's nothing given as United come away with the ball.

45' We will play one additional minute of added time to close out this closely fought first half.

44' With his opener the difference between the two sides so far, it's worth noting that all of Benrahma's six league goals so far this season have come at the London Stadium - only three of his first nine goals in the competition came at home before 2022-23.

42' Antony hangs a high cross towards Rashford at the far post, but it's not the best ball to attack and the forward's downward header is easily held by Fabianski.

41' Despite having nine shots to West Ham's three, none of Manchester United's attempts have been on target yet, having mostly been restricted to speculative efforts from range.

39' Rashford has the ball in space and tries his luck from 40 yards, sending a swerving, dipping effort wide of the target and into the stanchion behind the goal!

38' Antony races into open space down the right, before having a cross deflected off Paqueta. He is shoulder-barged almost into row one by his international team-mate as Antony keeps the move alive, with his ball into the area almost breaking for Eriksen before Aguerd clears for West Ham.

T. Malacia

Yellow Card

36' Malacia shoves Bowen to the floor and catches the back of his calf on the way down, warranting the first booking of this game from the referee.

34' Wan-Bissaka pops up in the left channel of the box and beats Aguerd on his way. He bears down on goal chasing his own knock forward, but Fabianski gets down to smother the ball before he can get there.

32' WIDE!! Antony's first touch takes him past Benrahma, before shooting from the edge of the box. It's a thunderous effort that takes a nick off a claret shirt, and shaves the outside of the post on its way behind for a corner.

30' CHANCE! Antonio bursts past Lindelof to surge down the left flank, before cutting the ball back to Bowen. A deflection makes it a difficult shot for the winger to hit, and his attempt skews up and into the waiting gloves of De Gea.

29' United have failed to win in the last four Premier League matches when they have conceded the opening goal, dating back to mid-January against Manchester City. To make matters worse, De Gea has now made four errors directly leading to goals this season, drawing him level with Tottenham's Hugo Lloris at the top of that undesirable list.

S. Benrahma

Goal

27' GOOOOOOOAAAAALLLL!!!! A hammer blow from the home side!!! Shaw is bullied off the ball by Antonio and Benrahma is the beneficiary. He drives towards the box and shoots early from 20 yards, but the effort catches a back-tracking De Gea off-guard. The goalkeeper dives to save and gets a hand on the ball, but can only push it into the bottom corner to gift West Ham a 1-0 lead! A massive error from a distraught De Gea, but the home fans are ecstatic all the same.

25' The visitors have options queuing up in the box as Antony decides to shoot, but his curling effort is headed away by Ogbonna for West Ham.

24' Under pressure from Bowen, Shaw's defensive header only drops for Antonio, whose throughball for his winger goes astray and behind for a goal kick, despite the striker claiming a corner.

22' Casemiro attempts to pick out Malacia's run down the byline with a vertical pass, but the Brazilian's ball forward is overhit and rolls out of play.

20' West Ham are winless in their last three Premier League home games, conceding nine goals across these matches. The Hammers had been unbeaten in their previous five at the London Stadium, keeping three clean sheets and conceding just twice before this run.

18' Fernandes tries his luck from miles out, shooting with some 35 yards between him and the goal, and the home crowd lets out a sarcastic jeer as the ball bobbles across the face and wide.

17' OFF THE WOODWORK!!! United counter once again and Fernandes finds Rashford wide to his left. The Red Devils' top scorer cuts onto his right foot and smashes an early shot towards goal, which shaves the outside of the post as it rattles into the side netting!

16' Benrahma is followed all the way to the byline before crossing towards the six-yard box, but Antonio can't get clean contact on the ball and his near-post flick is easily collected by De Gea.

15' OVER!!! Antony jinks in-field once again before teeing up Eriksen, whose first-time effort from the edge of the box curls towards the far corner, but just clears the crossbar.

14' Both sides have set up with low blocks, inviting their opponents to attack before looking to counter at speed. West Ham began with a rather aggressive press which sparked their early chances, but the Hammers have allowed their visitors much more time on the ball in the last few minutes.

12' United have won just one of their last eight Premier League away games against London sides, beating Fulham 2-1 earlier this season. It is as many defeats as they had suffered in their previous 23 visits to the capital.

10' WIDE!!! Malacia's cross is headed half-clear by Aguerd, but Weghorst nods the loose ball down to Antony. The Brazilian arrives on the edge of the box and lashes a left-footed shot goalwards, but miscues his finish and puts it wide of Fabianski's right-hand post.

9' United have won seven of their last eight meetings with West Ham in all competitions, with this the third consecutive campaign the two sides have met at least three times. The Red Devils have won both this season, and also won all three in 2020-21.

7' WIDE!!! Antony cuts inside of the right and spins away from his marker. The ball drops for Fernandes to hit, and the United captain drills a first-time effort low and just wide of the far post.

6' Another poor ball out the back from United is seized upon by Paqueta, but his pass to put Antonio in behind the defence is overhit and rolls out of play.

5' De Gea's pass from deep towards Weghorst is cut out superbly by Rice, who drives into the box and has a cross deflected behind by the United forward retreating in cover.

4' United have won their last two away league games against West Ham, as many as in their previous eight visits. They last won three in a row at the Hammers between February 2009 and April 2011.

2' The visitors counter at speed as Rashford charges up the middle. Playing a one-two with Eriksen, the England forward shoots from the edge of the box, but his curling effort flashes wide of the far post!

2' Soucek's cross from the right sits up nicely in the box for Benrahma, but the Algerian chooses to pick a pass rather than shoot and it's cut out by the United defence!

1' The national anthem rings around the Olympic Stadium, and after that, Rashford gets the game underway for Manchester United!

The teams head out of the tunnel onto the London Stadium pitch, and kick-off is just moments away here!

The visitors make three changes of their own, with Netherlands internationals Malacia and Weghorst coming into the side, as well as Eriksen. They replace Diogo Dalot, Anthony Martial and Fred for the Red Devils, who also have fit-again Garnacho as one of their options off the bench.

The Hammers are bolstered by the returns of Aguerd, Soucek and Rice in the centre of defence and midfield respectively. The former scored in the 4-3 loss to Crystal Palace, and their captain netting in their last victory against Bournemouth. Benrahma also returns out wide to complete four changes to David Moyes’ side.

MANCHESTER UNITED SUBS: Jack Butland, Harry Maguire, Anthony Martial, Marcel Sabitzer, Fred, Diogo Dalot, Jadon Sancho, Brandon Williams, Alejandro Garnacho.

MANCHESTER UNITED (4-3-3): David de Gea; Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia; Christian Eriksen, Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes; Antony, Wout Weghorst, Marcus Rashford.

WEST HAM SUBS: Alphonse Areola, Joseph Anang, Ben Johnson, Pablo Fornals, Manuel Lanzini, Flynn Downes, Maxwel Cornet, Danny Ings, Emerson.

WEST HAM (4-2-3-1): Lukasz Fabianski; Thilo Kehrer, Angelo Ogbonna, Nayef Aguerd, Aaron Cresswell; Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice; Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta, Said Benrahma; Michail Antonio.

United’s five-match unbeaten run was brought to a shuddering halt by Brighton last time out, losing 1-0 to a 99th minute penalty from Alexis Mac Allister. Sat just one point above rivals Liverpool in the final Champions League place, three points here for the Red Devils would see them leapfrog Newcastle United into third.

Sat 15th in the table and four points above the drop zone, West Ham have a chance to go seven clear of the bottom three in this game to all-but guarantee their Premier League safety. However, the Hammers have tasted defeat in each of their last three games, the first of which was a 2-1 loss to Liverpool in their last home game.

Hello and welcome to live coverage of this Premier League fixture, as West Ham United host Manchester United at the London Stadium.

West Ham United v Manchester United Live Commentary, 8/5/23

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