Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer channelled his inner Jose Mourinho with a furious reaction to the decision to award West Ham a penalty in his side’s win over the Hammers.
Cristiano Ronaldo had equalised following Said Benrahma’s opener 30 minutes into the clash at the London Stadium.
Ronaldo had two penalty claims turned down within the final fifteen minutes by Martin Atkinson as United tried to find a winning goal.
Jesse Lingard, who had just one minute of normal time left, scored the winner.
(Image: BBC Sport)
With mere seconds remaining, Andriy Yarmolenko fired in a cross which Luke Shaw blocked with his raised arm.
Atkinson didn’t award a spot-kick initially, but after reviewing what transpired on the pitchside monitor, Atkinson reversed his initial decision.
Solskjaer and his United teammates were furious at the decision. David De Gea continued to protest with Atkinson.
The goalkeeper’s reaction was much calmer than his manager’s though, as Solskjaer vented his frustration in a move that had the echoes of Mourinho.
Martin Atkinson was right to give West Ham a penalty. Please comment below.
The current United boss picked up a water bottle that was lying on the edge of his technical area.
Solskjaer hurled the water bottle at the ground, expressing his frustration with the Hammers’ chance of claiming a point.
He need not have worried though, with De Gea holding firm to save Mark Noble’s spot-kick and ensure United moved up to third in the Premier League table.
Solskjaer’s reaction drew comparisons to Mourinho, who had his own water bottle-related incident during his spell in charge of United.
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Mourinho’s bottle fury came during a Champions League group stage game against Swiss Super League side Young Boys in November 2018.
Mourinho was growing increasingly frustrated at his side after the Red Devils failed to score despite being in possession at Old Trafford.
In the fourth minute of extra time, Mourinho vented his frustration when Marouane Faellaini managed a Romelu Lukaku knock on before turning and finishing in the bottom corner.
Mourinho was furious at the goal and kicked one crate of water bottles to the ground before picking up the next.