'He's doing my head in!' - Wayne Rooney tears into Frank Illet for taking focus away from Man Utd team with viral United Strand hair stunt

West Ham ended The United Strand's dreams of a much-needed haircut on Tuesday night with a 1-1 draw against Manchester United. Carrick's team had headed into the match on a run of four straight wins, raising hope that Ilett could finally end his long wait for a trim. However, the Red Devils could only snatch a point at the London Stadium, thanks to substitute Benjamin Sesko's stoppage-time equaliser. 

Ilett was left disappointed by the draw, which means his challenge will continue, although he is happy his social media stunt will keep on raising money for charity. "The longer the better for charity," Ilett said on his live stream. "I don’t want this to be about me at all and I’m sure that it probably will be, but it is still unbeaten and good form."

Rooney let rip at the United Strand ahead of Manchester United's clash with West Ham on Tuesday. He said on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast: "I'd put him to the other side of the country. He is doing my head in. We are talking about Michael Carrick and Man United trying to win their fifth game in a row and the whole thing is about this guy getting his haircut. I bet he is devastated if Man United win because he will be irrelevant."

Ilett was teased for his challenge after Manchester United's draw, as TNT pundit and ex-West Ham star Michail Antonio shared his thoughts on the match: "They still have a great opportunity, they are the most in-form team. They have beaten Arsenal, beaten Man City. They would have wanted a win, especially for that guy, I don't remember his name, but he wants to get a haircut. You ain't cutting it now! They are probably the most in-form team. Coming here was a difficult game especially with the way West Ham played. [West Ham] sat back, they struggled to break them down. [United] had to get a striker on to get more crosses into the box. It's the only reason they got a point. I can't see a reason why they won't finish in the top four."

Carrick also spoke about his disappointment at not winning. He told MUTV: "We were okay. I think we're a bit disappointed. We definitely weren’t at our best. We've had five games now, and we've been at a really good level. It's a tough place to come, they made it difficult, and we just didn't quite have that sharpness or that spark, really, to find the answers too often. But in the end, big credit to the boys, the spirit again in the late goal, and when we needed it. It's a great quality to have. So, we'll take the point and we'll move on."

Carrick was also asked about the United Strand's challenge ahead of the game against West Ham and played down the stunt. He told reporters: "I can say I'm aware of it, yeah. My kids have made me aware of it, if anything, but it certainly won't go into the team talk from a professional level. I can understand what's going on with it and it does make me smile but it won't have an impact ultimately in the end."

Captain Bruno Fernandes has also been pressed about when Ilett may need to book an appointment with the barber and replied: "No, no, I need to book for myself. I don't really look at other people if they need to go to the hairdresser. That's not important for me.”

The United Strand now faces a long wait just to see the Red Devils back in action. Carrick's team have a gap in their schedule and don't play again until February 23rd against Everton. United then go on to face Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Bournemouth in the Premier League.