Alex Ferguson gave his Manchester United players the 'hairdryer' treatment after their defeat at West Ham.

The Red Devils blew an early lead at Upton Park to go down 2-1, surrendering top spot in the Premier League in the process.

And Ferguson wasted no time in turning his fury on the players after allowing the Hammers to fight their way back into the contest.

Striker Louis Saha told The Sun: "The manager had a go at some of us. We let ourselves be put under pressure.

"We're not shocked but we are disappointed. We had the lead and threw it away.

"We've had some very good games but this was not one of them but you have to give some credit to West Ham," he added.

Ferguson himself admitted Alan Curbishley's men deserved the three points.

He said: "West Ham were the better team, particularly in the first half. They were aggressive and tackled everything that moved. We couldn't get our game going.

"We took the lead but didn't deserve it. We just didn't perform and you can't really pick out a player who played well."