LONDON (AP) — For Diogo Dalot, it was harder to miss.
The Manchester United right back summed up his team’s scoring woes this season by spurning the easiest of chances in the Premier League game against West Ham on Sunday after being presented with an open goal.
The Portugal international was played through on goal by Bruno Fernandes and lifted the ball beyond onrushing goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianksi to find himself in front of an empty net.
Dalot settled himself before somehow sidefooting a bouncing ball over the bar for what will go down as one of the misses of the season so far. He fell to the ground and put his arms over his head.
It kept the score at 0-0 at the time, and Man United went on to lose 2-1 after conceding a stoppage-time penalty.
“We have to score, we created so many chances. We should’ve been two or three up,” said Man United manager Erik ten Hag, whose job was under renewed pressure with his team having won just one of its last eight games in all competitions.
United has scored just eight goals in its first nine league matches. Only two teams have fewer in the 20-team league.
West Ham’s winner came after the VAR chose to intervene and send on-field referee David Coote to the pitchside monitor to review a challenge by Matthijs de Ligt on Danny Ings inside the area.
No foul had been given but Coote changed his decision after looking again at the incident.
“Before the season, there was the instruction about VAR only interfering in clear and obvious mistakes. That is definitely not a clear and obvious mistake from the on-field referee,” Ten Hag said.
“More frustrations but I can do nothing with that.”
United dropped to 14th place after nine games.
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