West Ham 1-3 Manchester United match report & highlights: Paul Pogba turns match for United
Paul Pogba sparked a second-half fightback which saw Manchester United beat West Ham 3-1 in front of 2,000 fans at the London Stadium.
The Frenchman had been one of several who laboured through the first hour, during which Tomas Soucek put the Hammers ahead, but his precise and curling strike midway through the second-half changed the course of the match.
Minutes later, Mason Greenwood flicked and fired his side into the lead before a more delicate effort from Marcus Rashford put the game beyond doubt, less than a quarter of an hour after West Ham had seemed on course for victory.
The result means United leapfrog West Ham as they move back ahead of rivals Manchester City and up to fourth in the table.
It will have pleased Sporting Life followers too, after Tom Cardnuff's advice to strongly back 2.5 goals at 5/6.
The 2,000 West Ham fans inside the London Stadium, at the first Premier League match to have supporters present since March, went home disappointed after Bruno Fernandes, a half-time substitute, turned the match in the visitors’ favour.
Fernandes had a hand in all three goals as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side made it five away wins out of five this season.
But it did not look like being Solskjaer’s day during a one-sided first half.
There was no doubt the crowd, however small, had immediately energised the home team.
After Jarrod Bowen had a goal disallowed, and there were several near misses, a West Ham goal duly arrived seven minutes before half-time when Aaron Cresswell swung in a corner.
Declan Rice flicked it on at the near post and Soucek slid in at the far post for his second goal of the season.
There was disbelief in the stands moments later when Sebastien Haller raced through and rounded Dean Henderson, only to somehow stumble over his own feet instead of rolling the ball into an empty net.
Cavani’s first United start in the league ended at half-time, with Solskjaer sending on Rashford and Fernandes, but it was West Ham who almost doubled their lead when Bowen was a fraction from turning home Vladimir Coufal’s cross at the far post.
Fernandes’ arrival, though, had given United much-needed impetus and both Scott McTominay and Rashford fired into the sidenetting before in the 65th minute Fernandes fed Pogba, who fired in from 20 yards.
West Ham felt the ball had gone out of play when Henderson cleared up field but a VAR check – with no useful camera angle to speak of – allowed the goal to stand.
Moments later United took the lead and Fernandes was involved again, his backheel finding Alex Telles who whistled in a low cross for Greenwood to take a touch, spin and fire home.
Then Rashford was played through by Fernandes only to place his shot against a post, but the England man made no mistake 10 minutes from time to round off the victory in style.