'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
A typical end of the season affair was witnessed at the London stadium as West Ham United and Manchester United played out a bore 0-0 draw. With not much riding on this game for both the sides, the action panned out exactly as was expected.
Both the sides did not take enough chances or weren't creative enough on the night to force a change of the narrative. Both Moyes and Mourinho looked content to end this game with honours shared. Luke Shaw had the best chance of the night but his shot was expertly saved by Adrian before the ball crashed on to the pole.
West Ham will be happy to take a point in this game whereas United will see this one as a chance missed to improve after their uninspiring 1-0 defeat at the weekend to Brighton. On that note, here are the five key talking points that must be discussed after this rather sedate draw:
Trending
#5 Jose Mourinho rings in the changes and tweaks his system
A lot of changes were expected for Manchester United after a 1-0 defeat to Brighton which was one of their worst performances of the season. Mourinho effectively made eight changes to the side that started at the Amex with David De Gea, Chris Smalling and Paul Pogba being the only survivors.
Mourinho deployed his side in a 3-5-2 formation with a surprise pairing of Alexis Sanchez and Jesse Lingard starting up front for the visitors. The three at the back system was used to counter the similar formation used by West Ham who rely heavily on width to get forward.
#4 Marko Arnautovic lacked support up front
Starting as the sole striker, Marko Arnautovic was expected to put in a shift and trouble the Manchester United centre-backs. The Austrian has been in fine form since the turn of the year and replicated that against the Red Devils.
He ran in the channels, held up the ball well, brought his teammates into play and was West Ham's best player on the night. Arnautovic gave Chris Smalling a rough time and got the better of the England international on multiple occasions.
But until Andy Carroll's introduction, Arnautovic was left all alone up front at times with no service from the other midfielders whatsoever. Joao Mario and Manuel Lanzini were too little too late at times whereas the likes of Noble and Kouyate were hardly seen near the United box.
#3 An unruly melee erupts at the end
It took eighty-six minutes for the game to have its most eventful bit of action. A late challenge from Paul Pogba on Mark Noble sparked a furious reaction from the Hammers captain. Noble grabbed Pogba by his face which led both sets of players to arrive and separate the two.
Yellow cards were brandished for both of them whereas a red was the right call for Noble's aggressive and stupid reaction. The midfielder might get a retrospective ban in the coming days. Tempers were also raised between Andy Carroll and Scott Mctominay in the background but it was nowhere serious as much as the Noble reaction.
Of all West Ham players, it was the ever-mercurial Marko Arnautovic who took Noble aside and calmed him down. But fortunately, common sense prevailed at the final whistle as Noble and Pogba made up for their fight and were seen hugging each other.
#2 West Ham fail to take the game to Manchester United
With safety secured against Leicester City on Sunday, many had predicted West Ham to play their last two matches at home in a fearless manner. Tonight, against a Manchester United side that was low on confidence from a recent defeat, West Ham had the perfect opportunity to trouble their visitors.
But David Moyes decided to use the safety first strategy and deployed his team in a 5-4-1 formation. His side did look threatening at times whenever the ball was fed to Marko Arnautovic. Smalling and Lindelof never looked at ease against the Hammers frontman.
Had Moyes started Andy Carroll up front with Marko Arnautovic, the United backline would have been under tremendous pressure from minute one. This United backline was there for the taking but West Ham did not commit men forward as was expected from them.
David Moyes' future will be decided in the summer with the board still not convinced over the Scotsman. A positive result in a big game against his former side would have helped his cause but Moyes went in with a reactive approach on the night.
#1 Jose Mourinho missed a trick with his strikers' selection
After revealing in the pre-match press conference that some United players are "not good enough" at his disposal, Mourinho stayed true to his words and dropped Martial and Rashford to the bench. This meant that United started with Alexis Sanchez and Jesse Lingard up front.
In a 3-5-2 system with a place for two out and out strikers, the manager made his intentions clear by playing two auxiliary forwards in an unnatural position. Both Lingard and Sanchez have a natural tendency to drop deep to get involved in the game.
United hence lacked a runner that ran in the channels or a presence in the box to keep the defenders occupied. Paul Pogba had a lot of time on the ball but had no players ahead of him taking dangerous positions. With Sanchez and Lingard dropping deep, it all became too crowded in the middle which ultimately played to the advantage of West Ham.
Jose Mourinho should have started with either Martial or Rashford against the Hammers with Lingard and Sanchez behind the striker. It would have given United the much-needed freedom and movement in the final third to trouble the opponents. Meanwhile, Romelu Lukaku's absence was again clearly felt by United from start to finish.
