Manchester United vs West Ham LIVE commentary: Kick-off time, team news and how to follow as Red Devils eye top six

Manchester United will hope to build on an impressive win at the weekend when they host West Ham on Thursday night.

Ruben Amorim‘s side beat Crystal Palace 2-1 on Sunday to move to within three points of the top four.

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United have only lost one of their last six and the win over Palace helped move on quickly from embarrassment against Everton.

But they will now be desperate to back it up with another three points that could prove they can challenge for Europe.

West Ham stand in their way, with the Hammers sitting 17th and only goal difference keeping them out of the relegation zone.

Must not lose

In the context of the Premier League season, Man United need a positive result from this game to build momentum.

However, for manager Amorim, it’s extra important.

The Portuguese boss has lost nine of his 19 league matches in the Red Devils hotseat at Old Trafford.

He’s won eight home games and drawn two in that time.

Should they lose this game, it will be the fastest ever that a United manager has lost 10 home top-flight matches.

And it would see Amorim break an unwanted record that has stood for well over a century, stretching back to the 1800s.

The current fastest is 23 games by AH Albut from 1892-1894.

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• Manchester United have lost four of their five Premier League games against West Ham (W1), more than they had in their previous 28 against the Hammers (W19 D6 L3).
• West Ham won this exact fixture 2-0 last season, ending a 16-game winless run away to Man Utd in the Premier League (D3 L13). They’ve not won consecutive league visits to Old Trafford since March 1934.
• West Ham did the Premier League double over Manchester United last season, last winning three in a row against the Red Devils between December 2006 and December 2007.

Man United vs West Ham: Team news

Man United could welcome back Matheus Cunha after he was forced to sit out of the last two games.

Meanwhile, Benjamin Sesko and Harry Maguire remain doubts.

Lisandro Martinez returned from a long-term injury off the bench last time out, so he could feature again.

As for West Ham, Lucas Paqueta is suspended after receiving an avoidable red card at the weekend.

Oliver Scarles is sidelined, with Crysencio Summerville out too.

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• Manchester United are unbeaten in their last 17 midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) Premier League home games (W14 D3), winning the last eight in a row. Their last defeat was against Liverpool in May 2021 (2-4).
• West Ham have lost just two of their 13 Premier League games played on a Thursday (W6 D5), though only two of those games have come outside of London (wins v Southampton in 2018 and 2024).
• Man Utd have lost nine of their last 14 Premier League matches in the month of December (W4 D1), including the last three in a row without scoring. They’d been unbeaten in 15 games in the festive month before this (W12 D3).

Man United vs West Ham: What has been said?

United boss Amorim is keen for his side to build on their win over Crystal Palace last time out.

He said at the weekend: “Now we have to work on the other half, when we are in the advantage, the way we control the opponent with the ball in their half is the way we should control.”

“It’s important to win every game,” the Portuguese added.

“Today was once again the proof that if you play the same way, but we increase the way we fight for every ball in the small details, the certainty on the pass, the movements. If we work on that in the different pace, we can beat anyone.

“So, let’s try to show that in the next game.”

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• Since a 3-0 win over Nuno Espirito Santo’s Nottingham Forest side in August, West Ham are winless in four Premier League away games (D2 L2), all under Santo since he arrived. The last Hammers manager to fail to win any of his first five away Premier League matches was Avram Grant in 2010 (first 9 games).
• Jarrod Bowen scored in both of West Ham’s meetings with Man Utd in the Premier League last season – the last player to score in three in a row against them for the Hammers was Jermain Defoe (2001-2002).
• Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has played more Premier League games against West Ham United without scoring than any other club (11) – he’s failed to score with any of his 27 shots against the Hammers.

Man United vs West Ham: talkSPORT coverage

This Premier League clash will take place on Thursday, December 4.

Kick-off at Old Trafford is scheduled for 8pm, with live and exclusive coverage of the game available on talkSPORT.

Natalie Sawyer will be your host, with commentary coming from Joe Shennan and former England Women’s striker Lianne Sanderson.

To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream. Listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.

The game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports too.