Arsenal vs West Ham
1-0
With the home supporters barely in their seats, a slow start saw Xhaka’s loose pass cut out by Bowen, cutting in on his left foot and forcing Leno to push the ball onto the post. The visitors were up for this one, pressing high to win the ball back off Nketiah, gifting Noble the opportunity to slide through Haller and call the Gunners German shot stopper into action again. Arteta’s side gradually got a foot hold in the game, building some pressure on the Hammers backline as Pepe found Aubameyang down the right hand side in which he looped in a cross with Sokratis meeting it, only for him to hit the crossbar. David Moyes side replied with another glorious chance of their own, as Noble swung in a corner to the back post for Diop to head down to an unmarked Antonio. On the spin, the Englishman completely missed the target, a major let off for the home team. Going into halftime the score remained level at 0-0.
Arsenal started the second half in the ascendency with Saka marauding forward from left-back, weaving in and out of challenges and finding Nketiah who’s shot was well saved by Fabianski. It wasn’t all one way traffic though as Creswell delivered a dangerous ball into the Gunners box which was flicked on into the path of Antonio who headed the ball back across goal. If it wasn’t for a miraculous save from Leno the Hammers would have been 0-1 up. The tension was building inside the Emirates as Arsenal pushed for a winner, then in the 78th minute a deflected Aubameyang shot fell into the path of Ozil who cushioned his header towards Lacazette, allowing the Frenchman to sweep his finish past Fabianski on the volley. After an outrageous 4 minute VAR check the goal was awarded and Arsenal came away with a slender 1-0 victory to boost their chances of reaching the top 4.
Player Ratings
Bernd Leno
Had an unbelievable game once again. One of the best keepers in the league and he showed that in this game. My MOTM. 9/10
Sokratis
Was solid defensively, but didn’t provide any support attacking wise. Unlucky when he hit the bar from a header. 6/10
Pablo Mari
Made one mistake early on, but recovered well. Wins so much in the air which is vital. Can only see him getting better. 7/10
David Luiz
Organised the defence well and helped Mari with his positioning at times. Dealt with the long balls effectively, another decent display. 7/10
Bukayo Saka
Always looks a threat going forward, summed up by his run early in the second half. Kept Antonio relatively quiet which is no easy feat. 7/10
Dani Ceballos
Controlled the game by dropping deep to pick up the ball. Moved it quickly and helped drive us forward. Defended well, putting in some great tackles and interceptions. Another brillant performance. 8/10
Granit Xhaka
This was a Xhaka of old performance. Sloppy in possession at times which almost lead to West Ham scoring. Did well to drop in when Saka went forward. 5.5/10
Mesut Ozil
Took him a while to get into the game, but when he did he moved the ball well and got the all important assist. 7/10
Nicolas Pepe
Caused their defence a lot of problems towards the end of the first half with some tricky footwork. Faded in the second half and was substituted as a result. 6.5/10
Aubameyang
Struggled to get into the game, especially in the first half, but looked better when Lacazette came on. 6/10
Eddie Nketiah
Couldn’t match West Ham’s centre-backs physical presence, losing the ball quite a lot. Done well in recent weeks, but still has a lot to learn. 6/10
Subs
Alexandre Lacazette
Provided some much needed energy when he came on. Provided more of match physically to their defence and scored the winner. 8/10
Reiss Nelson
Didn’t have loads of time to make an impact. Made a great tackle towards the end. 6/10
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James Humphreys
Gunners Daily 