Twitter explodes as Manchester United crash out of EFL Cup at Old Trafford
Manchester United's EFL Cup hopes were dashed at Old Trafford as West Ham secured a famous 1-0 victory in the third round of the competition. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer named a much-changed starting XI for the cup tie, with Cristiano Ronaldo not even in the matchday squad for the game.
Ahead of the game, the Norwegian explained the rationale behind his team selection and also admitted that Ronaldo wanted to be involved in some capacity.
"We decided [the XI] more or less before Sunday, as we needed more players to get more minutes."
"He [Cristiano Ronaldo] wants to play as much as possible, but I'm not sure that is possible!"
Donny van de Beek was handed a rare opportunity in midfield, while the likes of Alex Telles, Jadon Sancho and Juan Mata were also named in the starting XI. Manchester United took a while to get going and were punished in the opening exchanges, as Manuel Lanzini gave West Ham a shock lead at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils grew into the game after their early setback, with Van de Beek, in particular, looking sharp in the center of the park.
Manchester United fail to recover after early setback
Chances kept coming in the second half, but Manchester United lacked the cutting edge on the night, as they failed to score despite recording 27 shots on goal. Speaking after the game, Solskjaer admitted that his team could have done better, while he also went on to say that he was impressed by his players' work rate on the night despite the result.
"The attitude when we lose the ball, we run back, I can't fault any single player out there. We had one or two opportunities that could have and should have been goals."
"We ended up with 27 shots, which is quite remarkable for a team that's not really been working and preparing too much. Maybe you can see some players [who needed] minutes, but that's natural."
As the Red Devils suffered a shock defeat at home, here are some of the best reactions from the game.
Does a Man Utd player have to be stretched off to hospital before a penalty will be awarded this season?
Really frustrating and disappointing to be out of one of the competitions at such an early stage...
Time to reflect , to improve and to fight hard for the other competitions. #mufc https://t.co/HiirH0AJO2
FULL-TIME: Man United 0-1 West Ham. The home side now free to focus on getting knocked out of more important competitions.
Chelsea and Liverpool benched their best players and won…Manchester United played their best player Bruno Fernandes and still lost. Difference between Premier League contenders and a Premier League Pretender.
The Sancho United ordered The Sancho they got https://t.co/lJf9vdmqfa
Jadon Sancho after yet another disasterclass https://t.co/tz00lOJbGl
Havertz on his Sancho on his
Carabao Cup Carabao Cup
debut. debut. https://t.co/zlOzvPIczS
Anthony Martial vs. West Ham (H) | EFL Cup https://t.co/GzUrMFR321
Martial isn't a false 9, he's a false footballer. https://t.co/8X6IiNttmG
Martial in the box when Greenwood’s looking for the near post run
https://t.co/7rwPxRe2Tn
If 36-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo could track back, defend and run up & down the pitch, what excuse does 25-year-old Anthony Martial have?
Slow, uninterested and static up front. Makes it hard to defend him.
Fred should never start ahead of Donny Van de Beek ever again.
Van De Beek was very good and Sancho pulled off a trick, successful night all in all get the beers in
Hope this Donny Van De Beek performance isn't going under the radar
Martial’s United career is virtually finished this guy is not coming back
Chelsea through, City through, Tottenham through but “kings of England” out. Manchester United fans taking L after L
Genuinely think I put more effort making my cup of tea this morning than Anthony Martial did tonight. This is Man Utd’s #9.
Anthony Martial's career is finished at Man United if we're being honest