A shambles! No energy, no desire, no hunger

FORGET the Paul Pogba situation, Manchester United’s problems run far deeper than that. Their players didn’t seem to know what they were meant to be doing at West Ham and the manager has to take responsibility for that.

United were so passive you would never have guessed they were playing against a team who hadn’t won at home in the Premier League this season.

Jose Mourinho’s master plan of three at the back effectively became five because they didn’t press the ball.

There was no energy, desire or hunger and West Ham were allowed all the time and space they needed.

And why did Mourinho ask an inexperienced midfield player Scott McTominay to play in defence when he had Eric Bailly on the bench? It was unfair to ask the youngster to adapt to a new position against the excellent front three that West Ham have.

Even when Marcus Rashford was introduced and the system changed, Mourinho took off Victor Lindelof rather than McTominay.

It was no surprise that there was a huge gap for West Ham’s third goal.

Of course, there will be attention on Pogba being substituted in the second half. But it’s not right he’s the only player being dug out.

Everything seems to be on his shoulders at the moment because of his transfer fee and the other recent events between him and the manager but no way did he perform worse than Marouane Fellaini, Romelu Lukaku, Anthony Martial or indeed any of the United players.

It seems Mourinho is trying to make a point about Pogba but the manager is asking him play in a team that is rudderless.

For Pogba or any player to perform, you need to have teammates around you in a system everyone understands.

Of course, players need to take responsibility but that doesn’t excuse the manager. The United I saw yesterday lacked a tactical plan. A manager has to give his creative players a platform to express themselves and the gap between United’s front two and the midfield players was too big.

The team were lethargic, just as they had been at Brighton. How long can it go on for?

I’m not saying this group of players dislike the manager but it looks to me they are not on board with what they are being asked to do. And that leads to a lack of confidence.

I’d also look at the fitness levels given the lack of energy.

For West Ham, the system played to Marko Arnautovic’s strengths and he was the difference. Mark Noble rolled back the years and overall the West Ham players supported each other in numbers — the complete opposite to United. Everyone in a claret-and-blue shirt gave a 7/10 display at least.

In contrast, the number of changes Mourinho is making between each game is quite uncharacteristic. Maybe he’s panicking.

United had won three away games in a row but, after being held at home by Wolves and Derby, Mourinho seemed to be clutching to find a new formula, rather than providing some consistency.

Where do United go from here? The performance was dismal, not for the first time.

The Champions League game against Valencia on Tuesday looks massive for Mourinho.