Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has admitted that he "expected" Mark Noble to find the back of the net from the penalty spot in the latter stages of Sunday's Premier League clash with West Ham United.
The Hammers had the chance to level the scores at 2-2 when Luke Shaw was penalised for handball, but Noble, who was brought off the bench to take the spot kick, saw his effort saved by David de Gea.
Man United ultimately claimed all three points in a 2-1 win, and Solskjaer was keen to praise De Gea for making his first penalty stop since April 2016.
"We are very happy with the win and we deserved the win," the Manchester Evening News quotes Solskjaer as saying. "We played some very good football, created good chances, we pressed them into making loads of mistakes. Luckily, David saves that penalty at the end.
"I believe in David and I've seen him [make a penalty save]. He saved against Crystal Palace last season, and his foot was a little inch off the line.
"I've seen Mark Noble score so many penalties, you did feel down and out and expected to come home with one point but luckily David has continued his good form."
Man United will again take on West Ham in the third round of the EFL Cup on Wednesday evening before hosting Aston Villa in the Premier League next weekend.
Matt Law
