Aaron Cresswell cut a frustrated figure as West Ham United fell narrowly short in a 1-0 defeat at Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.
Marcus Rashford struck the decisive goal shortly before the break, although the Hammers had a hatful of chances to net an equaliser in the second half.
David de Gea miraculously kept out a Kurt Zouma header and later sprung to his left to tip a spectacular Declan Rice strike past the post as West Ham piled on the pressure late on, but ultimately left with nothing from a trip to one of the Premier League's supposed top guns.
Cresswell was disappointed as the Irons fell on the wrong side of a 1-0 scoreline - again.
“It’s a frustrating one,” Cresswell explained. “That’s the only word I can come up with. Coming to Old Trafford – it is never an easy place to play – but I thought we dominated in spells. How haven’t we scored a goal in the last 20 minutes? I don’t know.”
The vice-captain’s frustrations were compounded by a sequence of late chances for the Irons late on. The Spain stopper denied Michail Antonio, Zouma and Rice, while Jarrod Bowen also saw an effort somehow deflect off Harry Maguire and wide.
It was a similar feeling for the Irons, who also pushed Chelsea and Liverpool close at Stamford Bridge and Anfield, only to leave all three grounds empty-handed.
“De Gea has made some unbelievable saves,” Cresswell observed. “On another day [those efforts] go in. He has made three or four great saves. We have just spoken inside the dressing room – it feels like the worst-case scenario because we should have got something.
“We went to Anfield and felt like we dominated in spells and they are times you have to take your chances. We didn’t take them at Liverpool and that has been the case again today.
"It is down to us to put the ball in the net, and we have not done that.”
Those saves meant that Rashford’s goal would prove decisive in Manchester for the second sucessive season.
But the No3 wants his side to take courage from the performance at Old Trafford and build on that showing with two Premier League fixtures – against Crystal Palace and Leicester City at London Stadium – remaining before the mid-season break for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
“[The goal] was disappointing from our part,” he observed. “It was a fantastic header, but it was sloppy. From then on, we got back into the game and in the last 15-20 minutes on another day we score two or three goals.
“But we have to stay positive – it is a tough place to come. We have had some really good performances but haven’t taken any points. We want to stay positive and I am sure the tables will turn.”
