United Review | West Ham away

West Ham 1 - 1 United 

This was probably a good point all things considered.

Author | Lee Francis

We maintained our unbeaten run under Michael Carrick after a dramatic Benjamin Sesko equaliser claimed a late Premier League point at West Ham United.

The Slovenian striker scored his fifth goal in six matches deep into stoppage time to stretch United’s unbeaten run to nine games. 

It was looking like a first defeat since before Christmas for the in-form Reds after Tomas Soucek struck from close range early into the second half.

However, more pressure produced the grandstand finish with Sesko sparking wild scenes in the away end when he turned in Bryan Mbeumo’s cross six minutes into time added on, in a breathless finale.

Fan View | Improvements can be seen

Carrick did not come away with another win. But what he did show was a willingness to roll the dice when the game looked beyond us.

Cast your mind back to the draw with West Ham at Old Trafford in December. Ruben Amorim waited until 12 minutes from time to make his only attacking change, sending on Mason Mount for Joshua Zirkzee. The final switch of the night was like for like at the back, Lisandro Martinez replacing Luke Shaw. Kobbie Mainoo stayed seated. So did Shea Lacey. It felt cautious when we were crying out for something bold.

At the London Stadium, Carrick took a different approach. The introduction of Benjamin Sesko for Matheus Cunha was the obvious call, with Cunha struggling, although it would be fair to say none of our forward line covered themselves in glory. But the key point was the intent. Carrick was prepared to risk it, to chase something from a game that seemed to be slipping away, rather than accept our fate.

For supporters who have spent too many afternoons watching us fall short without a proper fight, that at least counted for something.