West Ham United boss Sam Allardyce has had a pop at Manchester United players critical of the substitution of Angel di Maria last Sunday at Leicester City.

Allardyce wrote in the London Evening Standard: "How quickly things change in football. Not long ago I was the hot favourite in the sack race - apparently I had just a few games in which to prove myself.

"For Louis van Gaal, however, it was the honeymoon season.

"Now it all looks different. While we've turned in outstanding performances in all but one of our first five matches and deservedly beat Liverpool last week, Manchester United are coming to terms with having five goals put past them by newly promoted Leicester City.

"Worse than that, one of the United players in the dressing room after the game apparently had the temerity to criticise Van Gaal's decision to substitute Angel Di Maria when it was 3-3.

"I don't believe that will have been a big problem for Louis - in fact there isn't enough of that now, in my opinion.

"Players now generally are quieter but just occasionally things need sorting out, among themselves just as much as with the manager.

"Whatever Van Gaal did at Leicester - and he may have made the wrong decision because every manager makes mistakes - the truth is it shouldn't have affected his team as much as it did.

"If he's swapping a £60million player with one who cost £39m, it shouldn't make that much difference, should it? I can't see a substitution as that much to blame - I think that's a cop-out by the players."