MAN UNITED 0, WEST HAM 0
Manchester United fans again vented their disapproval after they were held at home by West Ham United.
This was the sixth goalless draw the Reds have been involved in the current campaign which is not yet at its half-way point.
There were the now customary chants of “attack, attack” and at the end there was a chorus of boos.
Once again Louis van Gaal’s side lacked a cutting edge, though it was possibly the most entertaining of the goalless draws, five of which have come in the last nine games.
It was a frustrating afternoon for the Reds who had 21 goal attempts, but only one on target.
And the Hammers were left kicking themselves that they did not leave with three points as they were twice denied by the woodwork.
But it maintained their impressive sequence of away results as they have already won at Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool.
Van Gaal admitted his side lacked a cutting edge as it slipped to fourth place in the Premier League.
He said: “I was pleased with the performance but, when you create those kind of chances, you have to finish.
“I am convinced we could score, but we had no luck and need to be more composed. When you miss from three metres in front of goal what can you say as a trainer.
“I cannot say we played badly because had we scored one goal we would have been second to Leicester and on the same number of points.”
Van Gaal added United created more chances than in recent games, but need more composure as well as luck in front of goal.
He continued: “I am not worried, but we have to pass through this period which is too long.
“Our fans are disappointed, I am disappointed and so are my players. We want to score in every minute of the game, but it is not possible
Hammers’ manager Slavan Bilic thought his side’s point at Old Trafford was thoroughly deserved. He was especially please as they were without four key players.
“We deserved to be in front at halt time as we created three chances, one great one falling to Victor Moses,” he explained.
“United have conceded only one goal at home, and we did enough to score. United put us under pressure, but we weathered the storm and defended well as an unit.
“I have nothing but praise for my players. We don’t often get anything here and the players kept a clean sheet.”
Wayne Rooney and Marcos Rojo joined United’s casualty list.
Marouane Fellaini played in the No 10 role behind Anthony Martial while in defence Matteo Darmian played left back with Paddy McNair introduced at right back.
And Fellaini went close early in the match as his header from McNair’s cross landed on the roof of the net.
Fellaini also helped set up Martial whose goal-bound shot was blocked by Winston Reid.
But it was the Hammers that had the best chances of the opening period.
Victor Moses burst clear only to be denied by the legs of keeper David De Gea.
The Reds’ keeper then fumbled a cross from Aaron Cresswell. Chris Smalling’s clearance struck Mauro Zarate and rebounded against the upright, a huge let off.
And there was another escape moment later when Reid’s header from a corner also struck the frame of the goal.
United lost Morgan Schneiderlin through injury just before half time when he was replaced by Michael Carrick. They also made a second change at the break as McNair was replaced by Uruguayan Guillermo Varela.
The Hammers remained a threat after the restart as Zarate cut in from the left and forced a decent diving save from De Gea.
And Zarate had another huge miss pulling a shot wide from six yards after being set up by Andy Carroll’s first-time pass.
But United almost stole ahead against the run of play on the hour. Martial broke away on the left and crossed for Fellaini whose close-range shot was well saved by Adrian.
Martial then set up Juan Mata who shot disappointingly wide from a good goalscoring position while Bastian Schweinsteiger blazed over.
United made their final change with 17 minutes left when Memphis Depay replaced Schweinsteiger.
And it coincided with United’s best spell of the game as Depay set up Martial who shot wide when he ought to have hit the target.
The same applied when Jesse Lingard saw his angled shot fly wide of the upright.
And there was one final chance in stoppage time from a corner when, during an almighty melee, Smalling had a goalbound shot blocked.