Man Utd: Mark Noble's reaction to Ander Herrera time-wasting in 2016 was gold | OneFootball

The majority of footballers have been guilty of time-wasting on occasion, but Mark Noble once took matters into his own hands to prevent former Manchester United star Ander Herrera from doing so.

Back in 2016, West Ham entertained United in an FA Cup quarter-final replay at Upton Park, with the winner booking themselves a spot at Wembley.

While the Hammers were motivated by a rapturous home crowd, United showed their class and character on the night.

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A young Marcus Rashford opened the scoring with an exquisite strike, before Marouane Fellaini bundled a second over the line.

With 15 minutes remaining and a two-goal lead, some United players were prompted to begin time-wasting – something that did not go down well with the West Ham skipper.

Mark Noble's reaction to Ander Herrera's time-wasting

In the 76th minute, Herrera fell to the floor after fouling Michail Antonio.

Moments before, the Spaniard had received a yellow card and the home crowd were baying for the referee to send him off.

The second yellow card did not come, but Herrera was substituted by then-manager Louis van Gaal.

Noble, angered by the amount of time it was taking for Herrera to leave the pitch, picked the midfielder up and carried him to the sideline.

His actions received a huge ovation from the home supporters and sparked the Hammers into life.

Herrera, interestingly, showed little resistance to Noble and many likened the incident to a child being placed on the naughty step.

While some later called for Noble to be punished, the FA took no action against the former West Ham skipper.

Who won the game?

Just minutes after the incident, West Ham secured a lifeline when James Tomkins headed home.

And the Irons almost completed a remarkable comeback late on when Cheikhou Kouyate scored a rebound, only for the linesman's flag to go up.

In the end, United closed out victory and went on to win the FA Cup that season.

Many fans will remember Anthony Martial's famous winner against Everton in the semi-finals and Jesse Lingard's heroics vs Crystal Palace in the final.

However, the Red Devils have not won the FA Cup since.

That could change this year, though, with Erik ten Hag's team facing Brighton in the semi-finals at Wembley on Sunday, April 23.