3. Blind saves Van Gaal’s blushes
While Blind’s late goal will serve as a reminder of the resilience that the Red Devils still possess, there is no denying the fact that the visitors looked dull going forward, compared to the home side. While the Hammers’ front two attacked with pace and made penetrating runs, United’s front two were, for the most part, static and looked far from being the world class strikers they were supposed to be.
A midfield consisting of Wayne Rooney, Angel Di Maria, Adnan Januzaj and Blind had to in the end resort to long balls to secure a draw at a ground, where the Red Devils have a very good record in the Premier League. As good as West Ham have been this season, United’s inability to expose West Ham’s makeshift centre back pairing and score sooner than they did, showed just why they are a long way away from the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City, even if they are, mathematically just a few points behind. While a point from a tricky away fixture is good enough for most teams, United aren’t most teams, Although they are unbeaten away from home since early November, their tendency to draw far too many games of late have meant that they have been unable to strengthen their position in the top four and are still in the middle of a pack of clubs, desperately trying to get into the Champions League.
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