The Red Devils boss was unable to bolster his defensive ranks over the summer, forcing him to get creative during a Premier League defeat at West Ham
Scott McTominay was Manchester United’s best centre-half against West Ham, according to Jose Mourinho, with the Scotland international being asked to play out of position.
Normally more at home in the centre of midfield, Mourinho decided to station the 21-year-old at centre-back at the London Stadium.
The Portuguese opted to go with a three-man defence against the Hammers, with McTominay slotting in alongside Chris Smalling and Victor Lindelof.
United never looked comfortable during a testing encounter for all concerned, with a 3-1 defeat seeing a troubled season hit a new low .
Mourinho, though, believes that McTominay was one positive for his side to take from a forgettable trip to east London, telling BT Sport : “He was the best [of United’s central defenders].
“He had a fantastic attitude, he is aggressive, brave and had something that we thought was important for us, which is quality on the ball. He knows how to play football, he’s technically good, he can bring the ball into offensive areas.
“I’m really happy with the job the kid did.”
While McTominay caught the eye of his manager, Smalling struggled to keep West Ham at bay while Lindelof put through his own net.
Those struggles – which Mourinho had hoped to avoid during a summer search for a new centre-half – stood in stark contrast to the performance of the Hammers’ defence.
Issa Diop was a standout performer for the hosts, with his display – along with some questionable calls from the match officials – leaving a frustrated United boss to reflect on another tough afternoon which has seen more pressure piled on his shoulders .
Mourinho added: “They had a fantastic match.
“Congratulations to the scout that found a 21-year-old kid, Diop. He was a monster.
“We scored for 2-1 and then instead of a linesman mistake it is a referee mistake. It is a foul on Marcus Rashford. [Pablo] Zabaleta doesn’t have an attempt to play the ball, he just pulled the player from behind.
“The third goal kills the game, kills mentally a team that had a reaction and had a little bit of reward for that reaction with the goal they scored. Then we have 20-25 minutes to play believing that we can change the result, but the third goal kills it.”
Rashford briefly got United back into the game against West Ham when he netted 19 minutes from time, but the impressive Marko Arnautovic restored a two-goal cushion for the hosts within three minutes of the Red Devils grabbing a lifeline.